title: Improved asthma control in patients with severe, persistent allergic asthma after 12 months of nightly temperature-controlled laminar airflow: an observational study with retrospective comparisons.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Continuous or episodic allergen exposure is a major risk factor of frequent symptoms and exacerbations for patients with allergic asthma. It has been shown that temperature-controlled laminar airflow (TLA) significantly reduced allergen exposure and airway inflammation and improved quality of life of patients with poorly controlled allergic asthma.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The objective was to evaluate the effects of nighttime TLA when used during real-life conditions for 12 consecutive months in addition to the patients' regular medication.
  
  
  METHODS
  This multicenter, pre- and postretrospective observational study included patients with inadequately controlled moderate-to-severe allergic asthma who received add-on treatment with TLA for 12 consecutive months. Data on medication use, asthma control, asthma symptoms, lung function, use of hospital resources, and exacerbations were collected after 4 and 12 months and compared with corresponding data collected retrospectively from medical records during the year prior to inclusion in the study.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Data from 30 patients (mean age 28; range 8-70) completing 4 months and 27 patients completing 12 months of TLA use are presented. The mean number of exacerbations was reduced from 3.6 to 1.3 (p<0.0001), and the ratio of asthma-related emergency room visits or hospitalizations diminished from 72.4 to 23.3% (p=0.001) or from 44.8 to 20.0% (p<0.05), respectively, after 12 months of TLA use. The Asthma Control Test index increased from 14.1 to 18.5 (p<0.0001). After 4 months of TLA use, clear improvements can be shown for most variables in line with the data collected after 12 months.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The addition of TLA to the patients' regular medication significantly reduced exacerbations, asthma symptoms, and the utilization of hospital resources. The data support that TLA may be an important new non-pharmacological approach in the management of poorly controlled allergic asthma.
authors.affiliation: Allergy-Center-Ruhr, University Children's Hospital, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany.
authors.forename: Uwe
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Schauer
authors.affiliation: Allergy-Center Charité, Charité-Universitätsmedizin, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Karl-Christian
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Bergmann
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Pneumology and Allergology, Children's Hospital Augsburg, Augsburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gerstlauer
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Pneumology, Allergology and Immunology, University Hospital Aachen, Aachen, Germany.
authors.forename: Sylvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lehmann
authors.affiliation: Center for Children and Adolescent Care, Marien Hospital, Wesel, Germany.
authors.forename: Monika
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gappa
authors.affiliation: Allergy-Center-Ruhr, University Children's Hospital, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany.
authors.forename: Amelie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Brenneken
authors.affiliation: Department of Pneumology, University Hospital Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schulz
authors.affiliation: Department of Pulmonology and Allergology, Pediatric Clinics, Darmstadt, Germany.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ahrens
authors.affiliation: Department of Pneumology, University Hospital Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Jens
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Schreiber
authors.affiliation: Department of Pneumology, Hospital Bad Reichenhall, Bad Reichenhall, Germany.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wittmann
authors.affiliation: Allergy-Center-Ruhr, University Children's Hospital, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany ; Children's Center Bethel, Evangelisches Krankenhaus Bielefeld, Bielefeld, Germany.
authors.forename: Eckard
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Hamelmann
keywords: airflow therapy; allergen avoidance; allergic rhinitis; antiasthmatic therapy; environmental control; exacerbations; resource use