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Introduction: Why do only some of patients who are prescribed angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACE‐I) develop cough? The pathogenesis of ACE‐I‐induced cough remains controversial and requires further studies. Objective: We aim to investigate whether asthma is a contributing cause of ACE‐I‐induced cough. Methods: Patients attending a cardiology clinic between March 2016 and March 2017 who were diagnosed with ACE‐I induced cough were included in this study. ACE‐I‐induced cough was defined as cough which developed within 4 weeks after initiation of ACE‐I therapy and which improved within 4 weeks after discontinuation of the ACE‐I. Patients who had received ACE‐I treatment for at least 6 months without side effects were included in the study as a control group. Face‐to‐face questionnaires, pulmonary function tests (PFT) and skin prick tests were applied to all the patients. If there was discordance between asthma history and PFT results, a methacholine bronchial provocation test (BPT) was performed. Results: A total of 43 patients with ACE‐I induce cough were compared with 50 controls. Bronchial hyperreactivity (BHR), rhinitis, atopy and family history of asthma were more frequent in patients with ACE‐I induced cough (P <.001). Patients with ACE‐I‐induced cough had significantly higher incidence of diagnosed asthma [OR = 8.28 (95%CI: 3.26‐21.03) P <.001]. Conclusions: Asthma and an atopic background constitute a substantial risk factor for ACE‐I induced cough. The presence of underlying asthma should be investigated in patients diagnosed with ACE inhibitor induced cough. However, the fact that most asthma patients tolerate ACE‐I therapy, indicates that other cofactors are likely involved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aims Intrathoracic lymphadenopathy usually occurs as a result of neoplasm, granulomatous diseases, infections or reactive hyperplasia. Conventional transbronchial needle aspiration ( C- TBNA) is a cheap and safe procedure for diagnosing intrathoracic lymphadenopathy. The aim of this study was to assess the learning curve and diagnostic accuracy of C- TBNA after an observational education programme. Methods In the present study, we retrospectively evaluated our first 62 C- TBNA procedures at Erciyes University between May 2012 and December 2012 after an observational education programme. The first 31 patients were defined as group A, and the second 31 patients as group B. Results One hundred and seven lymph nodes were sampled in 62 patients by C- TBNA. Adequate lymph node samples were obtained in 52 of the 62 patients (83.8%). In these 52 patients, two patients had a diagnosis of 'suspicious of malignancy' by C- TBNA, and these patients were excluded from the analysis. In the remaining 50 cases who had adequate results, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value ( PPV), negative predictive value ( NPV) and diagnostic accuracy per patient were 80.6%, 92.9%, 96.7%, 65.0% and 84.0%, respectively. The diagnostic accuracy rates of C- TBNA for Group A and B were 72.0% (18/25) and 96.0% (24/25), and the difference was statistically significant ( P < 0.05). Conclusion C- TBNA is a useful diagnostic procedure for sampling intrathoracic lymphadenopathies and masses that are adjacent to the bronchial system. An observational education programme is helpful for learning C- TBNA. The diagnostic yield improves in time, and approximately 30 procedures may be sufficient to achieve successful results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]