December 2, 2009
Association News   Fellows-in-Training   Calendar   Archive   FIT Archive
 
Traffic pollution, indoor endotoxin linked to asthma risk at age 3
Babies and toddlers who are exposed to both high levels of traffic-related pollution and indoor endotoxin have six times the risk of developing persistent wheezing by age three than children exposed to low levels of the same pollutants, according to a study in American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. Researchers from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine followed 624 children with at least one atopic parent, completing examinations (with skin prick tests) and collecting questionnaires about exposure and symptoms at one, two, and three years. They also used land-use regression modeling to calculate subjects' exposures to traffic-related particles and home visits to determine indoor endotoxin exposure.
Read More

 
Study: Better ventilation improved evening breathing
Better home ventilation and dehumidified air may improve asthma patients’ breathing at night, according to a study in Allergy. Testing whether lower humidity might lower dust might concentrations, which can trigger breathing problems, scientists at the University of Glasgow, Scotland, studied 119 asthma patients whose average age was 42. They retrofitted each subject’s home with a humidity-lowering ventilation system, as well as steam-cleaned carpets and replaced mattress covers and bedding. In half the homes, the ventilation system exchanged indoor and outdoor air. They then measured subjects’ breathing patterns over 12 months. Researchers found no difference in dust mite concentrations or morning breathing tests between the two groups. But the group with the system that exchanged indoor and outdoor air showed significant improvement in evening breathing tests, while those in the control group worsened.
Read More

   Food allergies in children climb 18 percent from ’97 to ’07
  (Read All Top Stories)
A message from ACAAI President Sami Bahna, MD, DrPH, FACAAI

Best Care for Allergy/ Immunology Patients
For many years I have enjoyed my participation in various activities of the ACAAI and in contributing to our great specialty. I have taken great pleasure in working with its leaders and administrative staff, and witnessed remarkable achievements. Now I am humbled and greatly honored to serve as your president. My primary goal during my presidency is for our members to achieve the best possible care for patients with allergies, asthma, and immunologic disorders. Together, ......
Read More
 


Special Note: The ACAAI Annual Meeting had the third highest attendance in College history.


 
ASSOCIATION NEWS (See All)



ACAAI Annual Meeting attendance third highest in history
The ACAAI Annual Meeting in Miami Beach attracted 1,826 physicians, representing 49 countries — the third highest attendance in history (and only 45 fewer than the record in Boston in 2004). Total attendance was almost 3,400, including 284 fellows-in-training and 61 residents. The International Food Allergy Symposium had 485 attendees — the second highest attendance for the Thursday program. And, scientific session comments from attendees and speakers were very complementary.

Photos capture the ACAAI Annual Meeting's success: view photos
Read More  

Sami Bahna installed as ACAAI President
Sami L. Bahna, MD, DrPH, FACAAI, Shreveport, La., was installed as ACAAI president at the ACAAI Annual Meeting in Miami Beach Nov. 10.

Other elected officers are: Dana V. Wallace, MD, FACAAI, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., president-elect; Stanley M. Fineman, MD, MBA, FACAAI, Marietta, Ga., vice president; and Michael B. Foggs, MD, FACAAI, Chicago, treasurer. Elected as Regents for three-year terms are: Kevin P. McGrath, MD, FACAAI, Wethersfield, Conn.; Talal M. Nsouli, MD, FACAAI, Washington, DC; and James M. Seltzer, MD, FACAAI, Worchester, Mass.

Dr. Bahna is professor of pediatrics and medicine and chief of the Allergy/Immunology Section at Louisiana State University School of Medicine in Shreveport, La.

He is serving his second terms on the ACAAI Board of Regents, 1988-1991 and 2007-present; on the Executive Committee, 1991 and 2007-present; and on the Nominating Committee, 1992 and 2003. He also served on the Board of Directors of the Joint Council of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, 1997-1999. He chaired the Allergy/Immunology Training Program Directors' Planning Committee, the Annual Program Committee and the International Food Allergy Symposium Committee; is an associate editor of Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology; and is a member of numerous other committees. He served on several NIH committees and four terms on the Executive Committee of the AAP-Section on Allergy & Immunology.

In addition to several national and international honors and awards, Dr. Bahna received the ACAAI's Distinguished Service Award, 2005; the Distinguished Fellow Award, 2004; the International Distinguished Fellow Award, 1992; and the Clemens von Pirquet Award, 1978. He presented the 2004 John P. McGovern Lecture, the 1996 Bernard Berman Memorial Lecture and the 1988 Bela Schick Lecture. He also received the Leonard Tow 2005 Humanism in Medicine Award by the Arnold P. Gold Foundation.
Read More  

   Applause determines Dr. Platts-Mills winner of Asthma Raft Debate
   Duke University Medical Center battles 30 teams for FIT Bowl championship
   Dr. Bardana receives Gold Headed Cane Award
   Outstanding abstracts selected for Clemens von Pirquet Awards


FELLOWS-IN-TRAINING (See AllQuestions?   Contact your national FIT representative

Welcome to the Board Review Corner, prepared by Christopher Martin, MD, and John Seyerle, MD, Senior and Junior Representatives of ACAAI’s fellows-in-training (FITs) to the Board of Regents. The Board Review Corner is an opportunity to help hone your Board preparedness. 

Review Questions: Middleton’s Allergy Principles and Practice, edited by N. Franklin Adkinson, et al: Chapter 9 – Cellular Adhesion in Inflammation (Pages 149-164) – prepared by Christopher Martin, MD, and Jennifer Mbuthia, MD, Walter Reed Army Medical Center.


AMA CORNER (See All

Welcome to the AMA Corner, prepared by Alnoor A. Malick, MD, FACAAI, the College’s Delegate to the AMA House of Delegates, to keep you abreast of important AMA news and developments impacting allergy-immunology. 

  Report on the American Medical Association Interim Meeting of the House of Delegates, Nov. 7-10, 2009, in Houston


Relief Team continues to grow
More and more ACAAI members have joined the College's Find an Allergist, Find Relief education and advocacy campaign and received free materials to promote their practices.

Nearly 100 allergists signed up for the Relief Team at the Annual Meeting in Miami Beach, bringing the total number of members to more than 1,300. These members received a toolkit of materials they can personalize, including the  allergist logo, template ads, sample newsletter articles, outlines for community presentations, and suggested media outreach topics. The kit also includes copies of a brochure for patients that describes the conditions allergists treat.

The free materials are available to any allergist member of ACAAI. Toolkits can be ordered by visiting www.AllergyAndAsthmaRelief.org/ order. Additional copies of the brochure are available at the same address.
Read More

2010 ACAAI/AAAAI Board Review Course registration now open
Online registration is now open for the April 15-18, 2010, ACAAI/AAAAI Certification/Maintenance of Certification Board Review Course at the Renaissance Hotel, Chicago. The printed program has been mailed. This course is sponsored by the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, in cooperation with the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. View the preliminary program online. Scan the program for sessions and presentation times...and register NOW before rates go up Jan. 1, 2010.
Read More

Calendar Of Events






 
 
Copyright © 2009 American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. All rights reserved.
ACAAI eNews is sent as a membership benefit of the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology.
E-newsletter services provided by the medical editors at Ascend Media, LLC.

 

Do you have news, responses or opinions to share with us? Please e-mail the association office at enews@acaai.org