Bronchial Thermoplasty is the first non-drug, FDA approved therapy for severe asthma

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TO HEALTH, MEDICAL, AND NATIONAL EDITORS:

New Procedure Helps Patients with Severe Asthma Breathe Easier

CHICAGO, Feb. 27, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Like millions of

people, Jeannine Childs suffers from asthma. But unlike most, her

asthma was debilitating. For years she struggled with wheezing,

shortness of breath and fits of coughing so severe that they often

landed her in the hospital. Nothing was really working - not lifestyle

changes, not medications.

"It was awful, I'd have these episodes and I'd have to go to the

hospital sometimes twice a month," said Childs, a 75 year old who

lives in Chicago. "I tried a lot of medications but nothing was

working so finally I asked my pulmonologist if there was anything else

I could try."

That's when she heard about a new procedure being offered by

Northwestern Medicine@ called bronchial thermoplasty (BT). It's first

non-drug therapy approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) for

patients with severe asthma.

BT is a simple, minimally-invasive procedure. It's performed in three

different parts, and each time a different section of the lung is

treated. BT is designed to be an outpatient procedure. During heat

energy is delivered to the airway of the lungs; reducing the excessive

muscle, which decreases the ability of the airway to narrow. This

helps reduce the amount of asthma attacks.

"This procedure is for patients who, despite receiving high levels of

asthma medications, continue to suffer from asthma attacks,"

said Colin Gillespie, MD, pulmonologist and director of interventional

pulmonology at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. "BT offers these

patients a way to control their disease."

Nearly 24 million people in the United States suffer from asthma. For

most of them, avoiding allergens and taking medications help keep

their asthma under control. But for people like Childs, who suffer

with severe persistent asthma, frequent hospital visits tend to be the

norm and taking medications and lifestyle changes don't do the

trick.

"Asthma affects many people in this country, and often is undertreated

by physicians," says Ravi Kalhan, MD, pulmonologist and director of

the asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) program at

Northwestern Memorial. "The bronchial thermoplasty procedure offers

our patients with severe refractory asthma an option that may improve

their quality of life. This is an important addition to the available

therapies for this common condition."

In a clinical study, adults with severe asthma that were treated with

BT had improved quality of life.

-- 84 percent reduction in emergency room visits for symptoms of

asthma

-- 73 percent reduction in hospital visits for symptoms of asthma

-- 66 percent reduction in lost days from work, school, or other

activities due to asthma

-- 32 percent reduction in asthma attacks

Childs said she has seen an incredible improvement since getting the

three bronchial thermoplasty treatments in August.

"If anyone suffers from asthma like I did, they know it's horrible,"

Childs said. "It affects your breathing - something you do every

minute of every day. I feel like I have my life back."

To learn more about pulmonology and critical care at Northwestern

Memorial, visit us online. To make an appointment with a physician,

please call 312-926-0779.

About Northwestern Medicine @ Northwestern Medicine@ is the

collaboration between Northwestern Memorial HealthCare and

Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine around a strategic

vision to transform the future of healthcare. It encompasses the

research, teaching and patient care activities of the academic medical

center. Sharing a commitment to superior quality, academic excellence

and patient safety, the organizations within Northwestern Medicine

comprise more than 9,000 clinical and administrative staff, 3,100

medical and science faculty and 700 students. The entities involved in

Northwestern Medicine remain separate organizations. Northwestern

Medicine is a trademark of Northwestern Memorial HealthCare and is

used by Northwestern University.

About Northwestern Memorial Hospital Northwestern Memorial is one of

the country's premier academic medical center hospitals and is the

primary teaching hospital of the Northwestern University Feinberg

School of Medicine. Along with its Prentice Women's Hospital and Stone

Institute of Psychiatry, the hospital has 1,705 affiliated physicians

and 6,769 employees. Northwestern Memorial is recognized for

providing exemplary patient care and state-of-the art advancements in

the areas of cardiovascular care; women's health; oncology; neurology

and neurosurgery; solid organ and soft tissue transplants and

orthopaedics.

Northwestern Memorial has nursing Magnet Status, the nation's highest

recognition for patient care and nursing excellence. Northwestern

Memorial ranks 6th in the nation in the U.S. News & World Report

2013-14 Honor Roll of America's Best Hospitals. The hospital is

recognized in 14 of 16 clinical specialties rated by U.S. News and is

No. 1 in Illinois and Chicago in U.S. News' 2013-14 state and metro

rankings, respectively. For 14 years running, Northwestern Memorial

has been rated among the "100 Best Companies for Working Mothers"

guide by Working Mother magazine. The hospital is a recipient of the

prestigious National Quality Health Care Award and has been chosen by

Chicagoans as the Consumer Choice according to the National Research

Corporation's annual survey for 15 consecutive years.

SOURCE Northwestern Medicine

-0- 02/27/2014

/CONTACT: Sheila Galloro, 312-926-0735, sgalloro@nmh.org

CO: Northwestern Medicine

ST: Illinois

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