Half the students' families will receive air purifiers for their homes and be asked to vacuum frequently with a high-efficiency-particle-arresting (HEPA) filter vacuum. The students' lung function will be measured daily. Over a three-year period, researchers will gather and analyze data to determine whether, and how much, asthma severity can be reduced by cleaning the air the children breathe.
Data previously gathered by Rabinovitch and Gelfand, suggest that air pollution does exacerbate asthma and that decreased PM2.5 exposures are associated with increases in pulmonary function over a six-week period. What is unknown, and will be explored in this study, are the long-term effects of the pollution and its reduction in the home.
"We're grateful to the Thrasher Research Fund for partnering with us," said Dr. Rabinovitch, the principal investigator for the study. "What we learn could give us a much wider range of tools for preventing and treating asthma and other lung diseases, with approaches that do not involve the use of drugs alone."
"We are pleased to fund a research project that has the potential for impacting the health of so many children who are affected by respiratory conditions," said Dr. A. Dean Byrd, President of the Thrasher Research Fund. "Particularly, we are fortunate that such world-renowned scientists such as Drs. Rabinovitch and Gelfand will be guiding this research."
The Salt Lake City-based Thrasher Research Fund was made possible through the generosity of E.W. "Al" Thrasher in the mid 1970's to provide grants that foster an environment of creativity and discovery
'"/>
Contact: William Allstetter
allstetterw@njc.org
303-398-1002
National Jewish Medical and Research Center
19-Jul-2002