RevisiónDepósito pulmonar de partículas inhaladasDeposition of Inhaled Particles in the Lungs
Inhaled medication is the first-line treatment of diseases such as asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Its effectiveness is related to the amount of drug deposited beyond the oropharyngeal region, the place where the deposit occurs and its distribution (uniform or not). It is also important to consider the size of the inhaled particles, the breathing conditions, the geometry of the airways and the mucociliary clearance mechanisms. ::: ::: Currently, mathematical models are being applied to describe the deposition of inhaled drugs based on the size of the particles, the inspiratory flow and the anatomical distribution of the bronchial tree. The deposition of particles in the small airways gets maximum attention from pharmaceutical companies and is of great interest as it is related with a better control in patients receiving these drugs.
Pelotas is a city in the extreme south of Brazil, near the border of Uruguay, with 214 000 urban inhabitants in 1982. At the time, we were assistant professors, each working in one of the two medical schools in the city, and both undergoing post-graduate training at the University of London. We were inspired by the findings of the British perinatal study, and one of us (FCB) decided to do a similar study for his doctoral thesis. The lack of reliable data on perinatal mortality in Brazil, due to poor registration of births and deaths—particularly stillbirths— justified the launch of the study. Funding from the International Development Research Center (Canada) was obtained for the perinatal survey, which led to FCB’s PhD thesis. 1,2