ReviewMultidisciplinary respiratory medicine2015
N-acetylcysteine in COPD: why, how, and when?
Review in Multidisciplinary respiratory medicine, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 30 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
30 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 66 citations in OpenAlex.
- Prevalence and clinical characterisation of thyroid dysfunction in COPD: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in medicine · 2025Pooled it
- A double-blind randomized controlled trial of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) for the treatment of acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.Respirology case reports · 2024Trial
- N-Acetylcysteine Improves Inflammatory Response in COPD Patients by Regulating Th17/Treg Balance through Hypoxia Inducible Factor-1BioMed research international · 2021Trial
- N‑acetyl‑L‑cysteine protects rat lungs and RLE‑6TN cells from cigarette smoke‑induced oxidative stress.Molecular medicine reports · 2025Article
- Liposomal Drug Delivery againstPharmaceutics · 2024Article
- Article
- Sensitization of GSH synthesis by curcumin curtails acrolein-induced alveolar epithelial apoptosis via Keap1 cysteine conjugation: A randomized controlled trial and experimental animal model of pneumonitis.Journal of advanced research · 2023Article
- N-acetylcysteine for prevention and treatment of COVID-19: Current state of evidence and future directions.Journal of infection and public health · 2022Review
- N-acetylcysteine Reduces Inflammasome Activation Induced by SARS-CoV-2 Proteins In Vitro.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Article
- Therapeutic Potential of Small Molecules Targeting Oxidative Stress in the Treatment of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD): A Comprehensive Review.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Review
- Metformin alleviates chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and cigarette smoke extract-induced glucocorticoid resistance by activating the nuclear factor E2-related factor 2/heme oxygenase-1 signaling pathway.The Korean journal of physiology & pharmacology : official journal of the Korean Physiological Society and the Korean Society of Pharmacology · 2022Article
- Review
- N-Acetylcysteine: A Review of Clinical Usefulness (an Old Drug with New Tricks).Journal of nutrition and metabolism · 2021Review
- Preventing the development of severe COVID-19 by modifying immunothrombosis.Life sciences · 2021Review
- Effect of N-Acetylcysteine on the treatment of acute respiratory distress syndrome in mechanically ventilated patients admitted to the intensive care unit.Medical journal of the Islamic Republic of Iran · 2021Article
- The Role of Glutathione in Protecting against the Severe Inflammatory Response Triggered by COVID-19.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2020Review
- The Beneficial Effects of Antioxidants in Health And Diseases.Chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (Miami, Fla.) · 2020Review
- N-acetyl-cysteine may prevent COVID-19-associated cytokine storm and acute respiratory distress syndrome.Medical hypotheses · 2020Article
- Multi-Layered Polyamide/Collagen Scaffolds with Topical Sustained Release of N-Acetylcysteine for Promoting Wound Healing.International journal of nanomedicine · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
1 author.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Oxidants have long been recognized to have an important role in the pathogenesis of COPD, and in this cigarette smoke has a strong responsibility, because it generates a conspicuous amount of oxidant radicals able to modify the structure of the respiratory tract and to enhance several mechanisms that sustain lung inflammation in COPD. In fact, oxidative stress is highly increased in COPD and natural antioxidant capacities, mainly afforded by reduced glutathione, are often overcome. Thus an exogenous supplementation of antioxidant compounds is mandatory to at least partially counteract the oxidative stress. For this purpose N-acetylcysteine has great potentialities due to its capacity of directly contrasting oxidants with its free thiols, and to the possibility it has of acting as donor of cysteine precursors aimed at glutathione restoration. Many studies in vitro and in vivo have already demonstrated the antioxidant capacity of NAC. Many clinical studies have long been performed to explore the efficacy of NAC in COPD with altern results, especially when the drug was used at very low dosage and/or for a short period of time. More recently, several trials have been conducted to verify the appropriateness of using high-dose NAC in COPD, above all to decrease the exacerbations rate. The results have been encouraging, even if some of the data come from the most widely sized trials that have been conducted in Chinese populations. Although other evidence should be necessary to confirm the results in other populations of patients, high-dose oral NAC nevertheless offers interesting perspectives as add-on therapy for COPD patients.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.