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Mar 2026
Breathing has long been recognised as a vital process in Eastern traditions such as YOGA and Ayurvedic medicine, where Pranayama is regarded as a transformative practice that harmonises body and mind. While the East developed sophisticated systems of breath regulation for health and self-awareness, the West largely overlooked their significance until the late 19th and early 20th centuries. A group of pioneering physicians, sometimes referred to as "the pulmonauts", including Christian Bohr, Konstantin Buteyko, and Peter M Litchfield, explored the physiological foundations of respiration. They emphasised the benefits of slow, nasal breathing and its relationship to both physical and emotional well- being. In the 21st century, contemporary researchers and practitioners such as James Nestor, J. Patrick McKeown and Anders Olsson have expanded this understanding through the fields of biochemistry, physiology, and biomechanics. Their work has clarified the mechanisms underlying conscious breathing and refined ancient pranayama techniques. Integrating insights from both Eastern and Western traditions reveals that breathing is a central factor in maintaining homeostasis and emotional balance.
Feb 2018 DOI 10.14302/issn.2329-9487.jhc-18-1932
The aim of this study was to assess the use of ambulatory acoustic cardiography during the initial data collection of the longitudinal study of a rural population in Switzerland (n=297, mean age 48.9 ±16.5 years, 57% female). Ambulatory acoustic cardiography non-invasively can assess sleep disordered breathing (SDB) and provides markers of left ventricular systolic and diastolic dysfunction. The percentage of the third heart sound detected during sleep decreased significantly across age groups (age < 40 years, 40-60 years, > 60 years) for both genders (males, p=0.04; females, p=0.02). The percentage of a fourth heart sound detected exhibited an increasing trend for both genders with age suggesting increased diastolic dysfunction with aging. Mean electromechanical activation time (EMAT) during sleep was within the normal range across age groups and both genders (male 93.7 ± 11.6 ms, female 94.6 ± 13.0 ms), and did not vary significantly with age. A large proportion of subjects had a high likelihood of sleep disordered breathing (17.6%). Baseline characteristics categorized by SDB severity indicate increasing age, male gender and being overweight (BMI ≥ 25) to be associated with greater SDB severity. Acoustic cardiography findings categorized by SDB severity reveal increased nocturnal non-dipping heart rate, presence of atrial fibrillation, prolonged QRS duration and QTc interval, increased percentage of fourth heart sound detected, and longer EMAT to be significantly associated with greater SDB severity. Overall, acoustic cardiography detected a very low prevalence of systolic dysfunction, age-related increases in diastolic dysfunction and a moderate prevalence of sleep disordered breathing.
Mar 2021 DOI 10.14302/issn.2690-0904.ijoe-21-3736
In the catering industrytobacco smoke was the primary source of fine and ultrafine particles, which are well known for their health-damaging effects. As shown in studies, attempts to reduce passive smoking in the catering industry of Vienna, like separated smoking rooms, failed to reduce fine and ultrafine particle concentrations effectively. On November 1st 2019, an enlarged non-smoker’s protection law was introduced, including a total smoking-ban in the catering industry. 40 hospitality venues with areas for smokers and non-smokers before the ban had been selected as typical Viennese cafes, pubs, bars and discotheques to be sampled unannounced. Concentrations of fine particle mass (PM10, PM2.5, PM1) and ultrafine particle number (PNC) and lung deposited surface area (LDSA) could be measured before and after the introduction of the smoking-ban in 39 venues at nearly identical locations and under comparable circumstances. Results showed a statistically significant decline in both fine and ultrafine particle concentrations in the former smoking areas for all parameters as well as in the former non-smoking areas for PM2.5, PM1 and LDSA. After the ban concentrations in former smoking areas and non-smoking areas showed no significant differences any more. From these results the smoking-ban successfully removed particles from breathing air of guests and staff, however, some outliers in the study after the ban point to the necessity of repeated controls in Vienna. Also, outside Vienna the compliance with the law should be controlled in the Austrian hospitality industry.
Dec 2018 DOI 10.14302/issn.2578-8590.ipj-18-2556
Swimming is a human activity that relies heavily on individual physiological capabilities. In fact, the swimming general performance equation, proposed several years ago by di Prampero 1, highlighted the energy expenditure, the propulsive efficiency and the hydrodynamic drag as its main determinants. Therefore, coaches and exercise physiologists have been proposing a number of testing protocols aiming to diagnose the swimmers physiological training status. However, most of these protocols are invasive, time consuming and costly (e.g. the oxygen uptake assessment and the blood lactate concentrations determination). In addition, some of these tests have some constraints, as the use of a cumbersome breathing valve for respiratory data collection (cf. 2) and the selection of an averaged value of blood lactate concentrations as an non individualized index of endurance performance 34.
Mar 2017 DOI 10.14302/issn.2476-1710.jdt-16-1332
Background: Unemployment is a chronic stressor which is associated with higher levels of impaired physical and mental wellbeing, e.g. reduced heart rate variability (HRV) and decline in self-esteem and self-efficacy. The present study investigated the effectivity of a HRV-biofeedback-training in increasing HRV and general self-efficacy. Method: A total of n = 22 unemployed individuals with adjustment disorder participated in this study (14 females, mean ages 42.53 ± 8.88 years). All participants performed randomized the “stress tests” for heart rate (HR) and HRV assessment: timed breathing, d2-attention-stress-test and math-test drawn from the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). Four sessions HRV-biofeedback à 20 min within 2 weeks were administered. HR and HRV were assessed before and after biofeedback training. ECG preprocessing and analysis were performed with the Stressball software program (BioSign GmbH, Ottenhofen, Germany). The RMSSD time domain measure was calculated as HRV index. Clinical outcome measures were the ADNM total score and the general self-efficacy scale (GSE). Results: Participants were well matched in terms of demographic and clinical characteristics. ANOVA didn’t demonstrate significant time x group interaction effects neither for HRV parameters (HR, RMSSD) nor for psychological parameters (ADNM, GSE). Conclusion: Our findings do not indicate that HRV-biofeedback can increase HRV nor general self-efficacy in unemployed subjects with adjustment disorder. Implications for future studies are discussed.
Jan 2017 DOI 10.14302/issn.2574-4518.jsdr-16-1333
Expiratory Positive airway pressure (EPAP) devices such as prevent have been used for treatment of obstructive sleep apnea without discussing their limitations. In this short review we discuss the physiological limitations of EPAP devices during inspiration and during expiration. During spontaneous breathing, when EPAP is excessive, the patient would have difficulty breathing in because lung compliance decreases at higher volumes. Furthermore excessive EPAP could lead to progressive trapping of air in the lungs. An ideal EPAP device should allow the patient to adjust the resistance to a comfortable level that would provide EPAP without a progressive buildup in pressure, without compromising tidal volume, without causing CO2 retention, and without disturbing sleep. The use of EPAP devices with adjustable resistance is essential for best results in treatment of obstructive sleep apnea and snoring.
Mar 2016 DOI 10.14302/issn.2379-8572.joa-15-891
Background: Despite its expense, labor and intrusiveness, polysomnography (PSG) is the gold standard for diagnosing obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Recently, commercially available electronic activity monitors, such as Fitbit, have become widely accepted and can provide an estimate of sleep patterns for screening children with possible OSA. A previous study demonstrated Fitbit to be valid compared to PSG in adults. To date, these devices have not been extensively utilized for research in children with sleep disordered breathing (SDB). Objective: To evaluate the validity of the Fitbit activity monitor compared to PSG in children and adolescents with SDB. Methods: Data was collected from 14 children, ages 3 through 11, who were scheduled for a PSG during the study period. Fitbit was worn concurrently during the night of the PSG. Analyses were performed by comparing total sleep time, number of awakenings, sleep efficiency and wake after sleep onset (WASO) Fitbit parameters with the corresponding parameters measured by PSG using Spearman’s rho. Fitbit movement epochs were also compared to PSG epochs showing movement behavior. Results: Pilot data suggest that Fitbit demonstrates a high sensitivity for sleep, a low specificity for wake and a trend suggesting good association of movement measurements. Conclusion: Although Fitbit is not as accurate as PSG for determining wakefulness, it may be a useful screening device to assess gross sleep quality in children. Further studies are indicated to validate these findings.
Oct 2014 DOI 10.14302/issn.2329-9487.jhc-14-edt3
An overview of blood pressure regulation in hypoxia addresses altitude physiology, sleep disordered breathing, and cardiopulmonary disease. It reviews pathophysiology and therapeutic implications.