| Abstrakt: |
1)A series of 10 cases of the pulmonary complications associated with cystic fibrosis of the pancreas is reported.2)It is a fairly common disease, and probably accounts for at least 4 per cent of all deaths in children.3)A history of similar disease in siblings is fairly common.4)The respiratory signs and symptoms soon dominate the clinical picture in this entity, and it should be suspected in any infant or young patient with steatorrhea and a chronic cough.5)The differential diagnosis is made complete by the examination of the duodenal contents and the finding of an absent or minimal trypsin activity on repeated examinations.6)Early recognition is important to prevent irreversible changes in the pulmonary tissue, and prognosis is improving with increased knowledge of the disease. In the present series of 10 cases seven are alive, and the treatment has been successful in six patients, only one patient having died since the use of antibiotics.7)Paranasal sinusitis is usually an associated condition.8)Because Stpahylococcus aureus is usually present in the respiratory secretions, penicillin by aerosol is the drug of choice, and streptomycin should be added if other pathogenic organisms which are penicillin-resistant replace the original invaders. Aureomycin and other antibiotics will probably soon have a place in the treatment of this disease.9)Vigorous prophylaxis should be practiced against the common cold and its complications, and against other specific respiratory infections, especially measles and pertussis. The patients should be kept under constant supervision at all times. |
