Asthma News – March 14, 2023
Current asthma research, announcements and opportunities, collected and distributed by Michigan Department of Health & Human Services (MDHHS) Asthma Program Staff.
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This report analyzes data from the 100 largest cities in the continental United States to determine its ranking. Grand Rapids (42) and Detroit (67) are the Michigan cities that made the list. Cities are ranked based on pollen counts, over-the-counter allergy/sinus medicine use, and availability of board-certified allergists/immunologists per patient population.
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is currently considering strengthening the national standards for particle pollution (also called soot). The ALA has published a brief detailing the need for stronger National Ambient Air Quality Standards for particulate matter. The brief examines why the current limits are too weak and explains the health risks of not adjusting them.
The National Cancer Institute’s Smokefree.gov initiative and the Indian Health Service have joined forces to announce the availability of SmokefreeNATIVE, a free 6-8 week text messaging program to help American Indian/Alaska Natives quit smoking commercial tobacco. Ready to quit smoking commercial tobacco? Enroll online (link above) or text NATIVE to 47848.
This study highlights that almost one in five patients with severe asthma achieve remission following treatment with biologic therapy. Remission was predicted by shorter disease duration at time of treatment initiation and lower body mass index.
A new systematic review and network meta-analysis of individual participant data found that using medium-dose inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) with long-acting β2-agonists reduces the odds of exacerbation and increases FEV1 in patients age 6–17 years whose asthma is uncontrolled on a low dose of ICS alone.
The predictive performance is heavily influenced by the study design, including the population, the outcome definition, the algorithm, and the model validation procedures. Identifying the most clinically meaningful model characteristics is necessary to enable a “best” model to be identified and highlight routes for future development.