Assessment of cough severity and creation of a new method for improving cough symptoms in patients with interstitial lung disease

2019 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 16K21102
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Clinical nursing; Rehabilitation science/Welfare engineering
• Research Institution: Kyoto University
• Principal Investigator: Sato Ryuhei 京都大学, 医学研究科, 助教 (10752058)
• Project Period (FY): 2016-04-01 – 2020-03-31
• Keywords: 間質性肺疾患 / 咳嗽

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The study evaluated the components of cough, namely, intensity and frequency, in patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD) and examined their association with clinical indices that include disease severity data. The clinical indices were found to be associated with patient-reported cough components based on the ILD subtype. Multivariate analysis of patients with ILD revealed that idiopathic interstitial pneumonias and the score of a frequency scale for symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease were independently associated with both cough components; however, the Composite Physiologic Index tended to be independently associated with only cough frequency. This study also assessed the effectiveness of a chest band for the management of cough in patients with ILD. A significant improvement was noted in cough intensity and cough-specific health-related quality of life in these patients after the use of the chest band. However, a small sample size limited the power of the study.

Free Research Field

呼吸器内科

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究により、間質性肺疾患患者における咳嗽重症度と臨床指標との関連は疾患ごとに異なること、咳嗽強度および咳嗽頻度に関連する因子は同一ではないことが明確になった。このことは、間質性肺疾患の咳嗽症状を総じて考えるのではなく、疾患ごと咳嗽症状を強度と頻度に分けて評価することが臨床において重要であることを示唆している。また、胸部固定帯は、間質性肺疾患の咳嗽の抑制効果のみならず、患者の生活の質向上につながる可能性があることが分かった。この新規咳嗽制御技術は、咳嗽を呈する他の呼吸器疾患患者への応用の可能性も推測され、新しい咳嗽治療のブレークスルーになると思われる。