According to a story from Science Daily, patients with cystic fibrosis have to deal with higher concentrations of bacteria in the lungs within their first few years of life, which was demonstrated in a recent study. The study suggests that intervening at an earlier age could be critical for extending the lives of people with the condition.
Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disorder that primarily affects lung function, but can also cause problems in digestive tract, kidneys, liver, and pancreas. The primary symptom is difficulty breathing and a cough with heavy mucus production due to frequent lung infections. Other symptoms can include clubbed fingers and toes, poor growth, sinus infections, and fatty stool. Severity of symptoms can vary from person to person. There is no known cure for CF, but the frequent infections are usually treated with antibiotics. However, treatment becomes steadily more difficult as the bacteria in the lungs begins to develop resistance to antibiotic treatment. A lung transplant may be considered in patients with severe symptoms. Most people with CF life to middle age, at which point the lung related issues may become fatal. To learn more about CF, click here.
Most of the studies involving CF have been conducted with older children or adult patients, with little attention being given to younger children with the disease. As a result, previous understanding of how lung damage and infections begin in CF was fairly limited. The study demonstrated that most infants under a year old generally appeared healthy; by a year later or so however, the situation was already changing. At this age, the subjects had a higher number of bacteria in the lung area than normal. With that said, the species were of those typical to the throat and mouth, and are not normally associated with infection.
