From Genetics to Quality of Life

Part 1 From epidemiology to genetics and treatment: candidate locus approach to the genetics of asthma and atopy; genetic studies of IgE responsiveness and asthma; polygenes, asthma and atopy. Part 2 Basic mechanisms of asthma: asthma - relationships between airway inflammatory mediators and lung function; basic mechanisms in asthma - endothelial cells; implications of bronchial epithelial cells in asthma; cell adhesion molecules; growth factors in asthma; corticosteroid resistant asthma; mechanism of aspirin-induced asthma; regulation of human IgE synthesis. Part 3 Allergy and air pollution: sensitization of young children; air pollutants and allergic sensitization; air pollution and asthma - the role of epithelial cells. Part 4 "Infectious " asthma: the role of respiratory infections in asthma; viral infections in children with existing asthma; treatment of virus-induced asthma in childhood - effect on long-term outcome; bacterial sinusitis and its relationship to lower airway hyperreactivity; importance of bacterial infection in the aetiopathogenesis of bronchial asthma. Part 5 Optimum asthma management: long term follow-up of asthmatic patients; new views on monitoring asthmatic patients; from childhood to adulthood - predictive factors; anti-inflammatory treatments for asthma - past, present, future; the role of education in asthma management. Part 6 New treatments: 5-lipoxygenase inhibition in the treatment of asthma; the therapeutic potential of PDE4 inhibitors in asthma; transcription factors and asthma; a new place for theophylline in asthma; IL-5 in pulmonary inflammation; IgE modulation - potential for anti-IgE therapy in asthmatic disease; asthma and immunotherapy; peptide downregulation of the immune response. Part 7 Quality of life: assessment of health-related quality of life in asthma and rhinitis using disease-specific instruments; genetic scales of quality of life in asthma and rhinitis; can management of asthma reduce costs?