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Objectives: People with chronic obstructive lung diseases often experience a variety of symptoms. Few studies, however, have described these symptoms in detail. This study sought to examine concurrent symptoms, symptom clusters, and the effects of symptoms on functioning in Korean immigrants with asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)., Methods: Outpatients with asthma or COPD participated in this cross-sectional, correlational study. Symptoms, dyspnea, mood, and functional performance were assessed with questionnaires. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data., Results: The most frequently reported symptom was shortness of breath. Three factors emerged from 16 symptoms. Age, mean severity score of 7 symptoms, working status, level of acculturation, and level of education explained significant variance in functional performance., Conclusion: The symptom cluster, consisting of 7 symptoms, showed the greatest effect on levels of functioning, which emphasizes the importance of assessment for coexisting symptoms in populations with these diseases., (Published by Mosby, Inc.)

Swine influenza viruses are an important pathogen in pig industry. In this study, we wanted to know whether swine H1N2 influenza viruses circulating in Korean pigs would cause clinical signs in pigs when experimentally infected. When pigs were infected with swine H1N2 viruses isolated from Korean pigs, pigs suffered from severe clinical signs of coughing, nasal discharge, labored breathing, facial edema, anorexia, and diarrhea. When the level of cytokine induction was measured using lung tissues, pro-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-alpha, IL-1, and IL-8 were induced higher in lungs of infected pigs than in lungs of uninfected pigs. However, no increased induction of the anti-inflammatory cytokines such as IL-4 and IL-10 was observed in lungs of infected pigs. These results suggest that the pathogenesis induced in pigs by H1N2 influenza viruses may be induced by pro-inflammatory cytokines instead of anti-inflammatory cytokines.