Search
The burden of bronchiectasis is disproportionately high in Aboriginal adults, with early mortality. Bronchiectasis precursors, that is, protracted bacterial bronchitis and chronic suppurative lung disease, often commence in early childhood.
Structural lung disease and neutrophil-dominated airway inflammation is present from 3 months of age in children diagnosed with cystic fibrosis after newborn screening. We hypothesised that azithromycin, given three times weekly to infants with cystic fibrosis from diagnosis until age 36 months, would reduce the extent of structural lung disease as captured on chest CT scans.
Children typically experience more mild symptoms of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) when compared to adults. There is a strong body of evidence that children are also less susceptible to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection with the ancestral viral isolate.
Macrophages are the major resident immune cells in human airways coordinating responses to infection and injury. In cystic fibrosis, neutrophils are recruited to the airways shortly after birth, and actively exocytose damaging enzymes prior to chronic infection, suggesting a potential defect in macrophage immunomodulatory function.
The airway epithelium of children with asthma is characterized by aberrant repair that may be therapeutically modifiable. The development of epithelial-targeting therapeutics that enhance airway repair could provide a novel treatment avenue for childhood asthma.