November 29, 2000 – Glutathione, a type of molecule that is extremely present intracellularly, could become a treatment of choice for emphysema. According to a case study published in Alternative Medicine Review, nebulized glutathione treatment has shown marked relief in a series of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), including emphysema.
The news is important since there is no treatment for emphysema, which is an irreversible disease. In emphysema, lung cells are destroyed. This results in permanent shortness of breath and various complications in sufferers who no longer absorb oxygen as efficiently.
The main case reported by Alternative Medicine Review is that of a 95-year-old man in an acute respiratory crisis, suffering from emphysema and a bronchial infection. The patient arrived in a wheelchair, and breathing with an oxygen mask. He had refused hospitalization and antibiotic treatment. She was offered treatment with nebulized glutathione (2 ml of a 60 mg / ml glutathione solution) inhaled over a period of five to ten minutes. As the inhalation brought about immediate and marked relief, it was decided to continue the treatment twice a day.
Three days later, the patient returned to the naturopathic dispensary without a wheelchair or oxygen mask and mentioned that he had not breathed so well for several years. He died two years later of a heart problem after continuing his daily treatment.
The authors of the article report that the administration of glutathione was aimed at resolution of the acute respiratory crisis but that the long-term improvement of the patient was an unexpected result. The same treatment was also offered to six patients suffering from emphysema and five of them reported an improvement in their condition after a single treatment of nebulized glutathione. Positive results have also been observed in patients with asthma, chronic bronchitis and lung cancer (non-small cell).
Considering on the one hand the safety and promising results of the treatment and, on the other hand, the scarcity of effective treatments for emphysema, the authors suggest that glutathione treatment is widely used.
Glutathione is an antioxidant and an enzymatic co-factor that is very present in plants, animals and microorganisms. At the intracellular level, it reaches levels which make it one of the most concentrated antioxidants. However, its concentration levels in blood plasma do not appear to vary in humans if absorbed orally. Its nebulization constitutes a direct absorption route by the lungs.
HealthPassport.net
Lamson DW, Brignall MS. The use of nebulized glutathione in the treatment of emphysema: a case report.Altern Med Rev. 2000 Oct; 5 (5): 429-31.
