Wednesday, June 30, 2010

New app for iPhone points you to the nearest ER

A new application for the iPhone -- the EMNet findER -- locates the nearest ER in the U.S., and gives you directions and other information you may need in an emergency. Our friends at the Emergency Medicine Network (EMNet) at Massachusetts General Hospital launched the free app this week.

Carlos A. Camargo Jr., MD, MPH, PhD, a prominent ER physician, asthma expert and director of EMNet, has worked closely with AANMA on a number of projects through the years. In an interview with Boston.com, he said:

"In talking with parents of children with asthma and allergies, it's clear that travel is a particularly stressful time for these families. One of the reasons is the uncertainty about how/where to get emergency care should they need it. It occurred to our team that we could use our research database to create a simple application that would quickly connect families with the nearest ER -- wherever they were in the United States."

The app pulls all of this information from a database of 5,000 ERs. It also makes it easy for users to dial 911 or the local ER.

Click here to download the app!

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Greetings from the NASN conference in Chicago!

Just checked into my hotel on Miracle Mile in bustling Chicago. Walked through the lobby to the elevator amongst a sea swimming with school nurses attending the National Association of School Nurses conference. So energized, happy. Their laughter was contagious.

I’m the last to get off the elevator. As the doors parted, I was hit with that fragrance some hotels use to cover up musty odors. It was worse in my room. My eyes are burning and my lungs ache. Already puffed my inhaler and threw open the window to let the less polluted air in. Someday soon, I hope hotels get the message that travelers would rather have clean rooms than rooms that smell like there’s something bad to hide.

I have to go to the registration desk to pick up my badge now; we’re hosting Fit to Breathe Express Seminars on Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm for School Nurses. (Click here for great free resources related to asthma & exercise.) Thankful to partner with Teva Respiratory!

Monday, June 28, 2010

Thomas Platts-Mills, MD, PhD, AANMA medical advisor -- elected to the UK's Royal Society!

Hooray for Thomas Platts-Mills, MD, PhD! Dr. Platts-Mills, a member of AANMA's Medical Editorial Board and a professor at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, has achieved the rare honor of being elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society for his research into the causes of asthma and allergies. He's the first allergist to ever be elected into the Society!

Read more here:

www.newswise.com/articles/uva-allergist-elected-as-a-fellow-to-the-royal-society

From the article:

"University of Virginia Professor of Medicine Thomas Platts-Mills, MD, PhD, has achieved the rare distinction of being elected a Fellow of the Royal Society for his research into the causes of asthma and allergic disease. The Royal Society is the United Kingdom’s National Academy of Science and the oldest scientific academy in the world.

Only a small number of Fellows are physicians, and Dr. Platts-Mills is the first-ever allergist to be elected. His election was based on more than 30 years of research on the role that dust mite, cat and cockroach allergens play in the development of allergic disease and asthma. His recent work, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2008, looked at patients who developed a life threatening allergic reaction, called anaphylaxis, during treatment for cancer. In February 2009, he led a study on anaphylactic reactions that occurred several hours after eating beef, pork or lamb. Both of these discoveries are related to IgE antibodies to a complex mammalian sugar which appear to be induced by tick bites. This represents a paradigm shift in the understanding of allergic reactions, including those to food. (More information about this study is available at http://www.royalsociety.org/.)"

Friday, June 11, 2010

Cottonique: Love at first sight

Cottonique. It was love at first sight, but would it last a lifetime? As I slid the chemise over my head, I noticed its softness and sturdy construction. It made me feel cozy all under. But would it be the same after the spin cycle in my washing machine? Would it stand up to the heat of my dryer?

I plucked it out of the pile of freshly laundered clothes and folded it. It felt softer and kinder. So I wore it again, this time as a tank top underneath a lightweight jacket. Just a simple little thing, but it looked great.

Next time I took it out of the dryer, I wore it as a pajama top. Yes, spending this much time together means this love has lasting power. I’m about to go to http://www.cottonique.com/ and order some more great cotton apparel.

I should mention that I have latex allergies and have seen my share of unmentionables that remain unmentioned because although they were latex-free, they also didn’t fit well or feel anything like Cottonique’s latex-free, formaldehyde-free, dye-free, chemical-free, Spandex-free, pH-balanced, 100 percent natural cotton apparel with inverted seams technology.

So yes, I’m in love and hope you’ll feel the same whether you have latex allergies or not.

Disclosure: Cottonique did not ask for or pay for this blog posting. Have you tried a product you simply love? Share it with me at editor@aanma.org.

Friday, June 4, 2010

Wheezing Babies: Is it Asthma or Something Else?

Not even the doctor knows the answer to this question until time, trial and error reveal the truth. But the secret to preventing severe symptoms is never allowing them to become severe in the first place. Alas, how do you know if you should treat the symptoms as if they're caused by asthma? Are you over- or under-medicating your baby? At what point do you say the treatment plan is or isn’t working?

Figuring out why a baby is wheezing is a little like trying to tango to a waltz. That’s why we were most interested to see new research published in the June 2010 issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (JACI) demonstrating the virtues of measuring exhaled nitric oxide, a non-invasive marker of airway inflammation in babies. I thought you might want to share the article with your pediatrician or asthma specialist, so I’ve posted it below. We’re also posting it on the new website for AANMA’s Great American Asthma Challenge.

Aerocrine makes NioxMino, the small portable device that measures exhaled nitric oxide. If inflammation is detected, the physician can prescribe an inhaled corticosteroid to use while the cause of inflammation is sorted out. If inflammation is not present, the physician knows to look for other causes of symptoms.

The only downside: the test is not always reimbursed by insurance companies -- yet. Work with AANMA to let insurance companies know just how important it is to reimburse for diagnostic tests and monitoring that allow us and our children to zero in on the causes of asthma and treat them more specifically and strategically so we can move on with our lives. Sign up for the Great American Asthma Challenge, and e-mail editor@aanma.org to get added to our list of potential advocacy contacts on reimbursement issues.

Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology Highlights - June 2010

Exhaled nitric oxide, lung function, and exacerbations in wheezy infants

Clinicians generally cannot distinguish infants and toddlers with transient wheezing from those with early persistent asthma. Debley et al recruited 47 infants and toddlers with three or more prior episodes of physician diagnosed wheeze into a longitudinal study to determine whether exhaled nitric oxide (FENO) was associated with lung function, response to bronchodilators, changes in lung function over time, or subsequent exacerbations of wheezing.

They used a flow regulated (50 mL/sec) single-breath method to measure FENO, and the raised-volume thoracic compression method to measure lung function with assessment of albuterol responsiveness. The authors found that FENO was associated with bronchodilator responsiveness, and that higher levels of enrollment FENO were associated with subsequent decline in lung function and exacerbations of wheezing treated with systemic steroids over 6 months. Enrollment FENO was superior to both enrollment lung function and bronchodilator responsiveness in predicting subsequent exacerbations of wheezing.

Although follow-up into the school-age years with a larger cohort is needed to definitively evaluate the predictive value for asthma, these data suggest that FENO measurement in wheezy infants and toddlers is a promising objective biomarker that may prove useful clinically and improve our understanding of the evolution of asthma in young children.

--“Exhaled Nitric Oxide, Lung Function, and Exacerbations in Wheezy Infants and Toddlers” Remarks by Debley et al. (JACI June 2010 / Volume 125, No. 6

The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (JACI) is the official scientific journal of the AAAAI, and is the most-cited journal in the field of allergy and clinical immunology.

PRECIOUS Breathers is AANMA’s special program to help you identify respiratory problems in children under 5. Everything about PRECIOUS Breathers is geared to little ones and the big people who love them! Here, you’ll find basic info about various reasons why your child might be having breathing problems—from common causes such as colds and teething, to more serious conditions such as asthma that require medical treatment. You’ll also find an online library of practical, family-friendly articles about some of the specific causes.

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Breathing for Two: Expectant moms with asthma may not receive most appropriate medications when discharged from emergency departments

A friend of mine is newly pregnant with her second baby – perhaps only a week or so. She and her husband have been hoping this day would come for at least a year. She’s already started her prenatal vitamins, taking daily naps and daily walks, staying hydrated and eating healthy, fresh foods while trying to avoid preservatives and unnecessary chemicals.

But she doesn’t give much thought to breathing for two because “I haven’t had asthma problems in forever,” she said, “and I don’t expect I will.” She may be right, but many people don’t perceive the early stages of airway inflammation, and others aren't aware that the asthma they thought they “outgrew” is silently smoldering and subtly restricting airflow--a dangerous situation for a developing baby.

By the time symptoms become noticeable or wheezing is audible, there is as much as a 15 to 20 percent decrease in lung function. Additionally, an expectant mom may attribute mild breathing problems to the extra weight she is carrying and not think about asthma.

Many expectant mothers are wary of taking any medications -- however, treating asthma correctly through avoidance of known allergens, irritants and respiratory viruses as well as using inhaled medications is extremely important. Yet a new study conducted by researchers at the Ohio State University Medical Center showed that expectant moms treated in the emergency department are less likely to leave the hospital with a prescription for an inhaled corticosteroid than other patients, despite national treatment guidelines advising their use.

Expectant mothers with a history of asthma should be evaluated by an asthma specialist such as a board-certified allergist, measure exhaled nitric oxide (an indicator of airway inflammation) using NioxMino, and monitor lung function using a peak flow meter at home.

Learn more:
Breathing for Two -- Expectant moms with asthma face special challenges. This 17-page booklet gives you straightforward, dependable answers from reliable experts. Available through the online AANMA Store.

PRECIOUS Breathers is AANMA’s special program to help you identify respiratory problems in children under 5. Everything about PRECIOUS Breathers is geared to little ones and the big people who love them! Here, you’ll find basic info about various reasons why your child might be having breathing problems—from common causes such as colds and teething, to more serious conditions such as asthma that require medical treatment. You’ll also find an online library of practical, family-friendly articles about some of the specific causes.