Respiratory Exchange

Welcome to a special series by Respiratory Exchange Addressing the Impact of RSV and Vaccine Hesitancy.  In this series, we explore the efficacy of RSV vaccines and discuss preventive strategies aimed at reducing the occurrence of severe RSV respiratory illness in infants, children and older adults.  

This episode will focus on the RSV Vaccination for Older Adults, and the importance of vaccination in preventing severe illness and hospitalization. Dr. Ronan Factora explains the risks and the benefits of the RSV vaccine while emphasizing the potential consequences of hospitalization including the loss of independence.

Dr. Michaela Gack explains her research on emerging respiratory viruses and vector-borne pathogens. She discusses the recent advancements in RSV vaccine development while addressing the challenges in RSV epidemiology, vaccination strategies and the importance of education, messaging, and novel approaches in antiviral treatment.

Dr. Siddarth Dugar talks with Congress Co-chair Roshni Sreedharan, MD and Cleveland Clinic Director of Translational Critical Care Research, Vidula Vachharajani, MD about the 2024 SCCM Congress. They discuss interesting sessions such as: identifying modifiable treatments on ARDS, typing of Sepsis biomarkers, whether to get a chest X-ray post-central line placement or not and a late-breaker session on a study involving the impact of head elevation during cardiac arrest. They also talk about a popular session on providing effective review of manuscripts whether they’re for publication or not and offer tips on submitting proposals for the next SCCM Congress.

There have been drastic changes made in the regulation of opioids for medical treatment in the past few decades. However, with advent of fentanyl and carfentanil addiction, overdose-related death continues to increase. In this episode, our guests discuss continued regulation of opioids, use of naloxone and when it may not counteract an overdose, the case for limiting the use of opiates in elderly populations who have existing co-morbidities, and how the use of opioids in certain populations continues to be appropriate.

In the ICU, each patient has a team of professionals on-hand to work with family to promote their well-being. While in-person communication is always best, what happens when that’s not an option – at all? Dr. Adi Gerblich talks about how the ICU at Cleveland Clinic Hillcrest Hospital pioneered virtual ICU rounding years before COVID made it necessary for everyone to go virtual. Hear about the hurdles surpassed, lessons learned and connecting with family members.

Dr. Cyndee Miranda and Dr. Joseph Khabbaza ,experts from the Infectious Disease and Pulmonary Medicine departments at Cleveland Clinic respectively, delve into NTM: how developing an index of suspicion can help identify patients early, what diagnostic criteria work well, when watchful waiting is called for, and the benefits of following a guideline-based regimen to determine success.

Sleep experts Loutfi Aboussouan, MD and Reena Mehra, MD join this episode of Respiratory Exchange to discuss identifying sleep apnea in patients, improving CPAP patient compliance and device alternatives for treatment including hypoglossal nerve stimulation.

Dr. Aanchal Kapoor covers some of the highlights from the CHEST 2023 conference with Drs. Angel Coz and Colin Gillespie including: procedure simulations, transfusion in the ICU, networking at the conference, pros and cons of artificial intelligence in critical care, controversies in mechanical ventilation, sepsis, ARDS, flexible vs rigid bronchoscopy, rescue strategies for hard to ventilate patients, neuro-critical care, the importance of case-based discussions and suggestions for submitting session proposals for future CHEST conferences.