A Comparison of Sweat Chlorides and Intestinal Fat Absorption in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Emphysema and Fibrocystic Disease of the Pancreas

Abstract

DESPITE extensive clinical appraisal and experimental effort since the time of Laënnec1 the etiology of chronic obstructive pulmonary emphysema in man remains obscure. Two types of observations suggest that this form of pulmonary disease may occasionally be related to fibrocystic disease of the pancreas: children with fibrocystic disease often manifest respiratory disturbances2 that are physiologically indistinguishable from those of chronic obstructive pulmonary emphysema in adults; and parents of these children may display a combination of chronic obstructive pulmonary emphysema and abnormalities in the composition of sweat similar to those generally identified with cystic fibrosis of the pancreas.3 The purpose of . . .