MADISON, Wis. – [December 5, 2011] – Asthmapolis, a company developing new technologies to help patients and physicians improve the management of asthma, presented the initial results from its study of asthma among rural residents of the Midwest at the mHealth Summit, a major event in the mobile and wireless health industry held today through Wednesday in Washington, D.C.
The study involved 32 rural adults with asthma who used the Asthmapolis medication sensor, an electronic device that uses GPS to passively and objectively monitor the time and location of use of short-acting bronchodilators over a four-month period in 2010.
“We’re very encouraged by these results, which demonstrate the feasibility and utility of inhaled medication sensors to assess the frequency, timing and location of asthma symptoms in a population,” noted David Van Sickle, PhD and co-founder of Asthmapolis. “In addition, our report indicates that many rural residents in this study did not have their disease under control and were suffering from frequent asthma symptoms, most of which could be prevented with appropriate treatment.”
Altogether, a total of 1,476 inhaler events were observed over the study period. According to national guidelines, use of a rescue inhaler – one designed to relieve symptoms whenever they occur— more than two days per week is a sign of uncontrolled asthma. Of the 32 participants, nine had one or more seven-day period during which their asthma was uncontrolled, 21 had seven-day periods during which their asthma was well controlled, eight did not have any period during which their asthma was under control and just four maintained control over their asthma for the full duration of the study. Of the 31 participants who had events, only 10 used their rescue inhaler less than once a day on average.
The study, which Van Sickle co-authored with Sheryl Magzamen, PhD of the University of Oklahoma, was funded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and conducted in response to a 2009 CDC study that revealed an unexpectedly high prevalence of asthma and asthma symptoms among rural residents. The results provide a new perspective on the day-to-day burden of the disease in this demographic group, and they indicate that the technologies employed in the study, and the information they provide, have the ability to complement and strengthen public health surveillance.
In addition, these findings raise questions about the relationship between rural environmental exposures and the development of asthma. Much more is known about asthma among rural populations in low- and middle-income countries than in the United States, where the focus on asthma has been as a disease of urban centers. Part of Asthmapolis’ mission is to use sensors to reveal new patterns of asthma that may help to better understand the origins of the disease.
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