Does slower beat of nasal cilia lead to more respiratory infections in older persons?
Knowing that older persons are especially susceptible to lower respiratory tract infections, these investigators studied cilia movementthe rhythmic action of tiny hair-like structuresin the nasal passages. The sweeping action of cilia help to move mucus and to defend the airway against inhaled microbes. The Hong Kong investigators point out the efficacy of mucociliary clearance depends on the function of healthily beating respiratory cilia which must beat in a coordinated fashion and in the same direction. In their research with 90 persons who ranged in age from 11 to 90, they found that those over age 40 had a significantly lower ciliary beat frequency than their younger counterparts. They also saw an increasing occurrence of ultra-structural defects in the older persons cilia, according to their research study published in the second of two March issues of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. These findings, they believe, could explain the frequent occurren
