LAC+USC Medical Center’s Breathmobile® Participates in “EIB Active” Campaign with Celebrity Nanny Jo Frost to Educate Families About Asthma and Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm (EIB)

Los Angeles, CA - LAC+USC Medical Center Breathmobile® joins forces with Celebrity Nanny and parenting guru Jo Frost to educate families on EIB and the importance of remaining healthy and active despite the diagnosis. EIB Active, a national health campaign started in 2010 was created to raise awareness about asthma and exercise induced bronchospasm. EIB is a breathing condition that is estimated to affect some 30 million people in the United States and is a treatable condition that causes wheezing, coughing and chest tightness during or immediately following exercise or physical activity.

The LAC+USC Breathmobile® unit will participate in a second stop multi-city tour for EIB Active on Wednesday, January 26, 2011 at St. Michael’s Catholic School located at 1027 West 87th Street, Los Angeles, CA. 90044. The mobile unit will provide basic asthma screenings and educational materials and resources for families.

Celebrity nanny and parenting guru, Jo Frost, who was diagnosed with both asthma and EIB at the age of five years, will also visit the school to speak with the families and school administrators about asthma and EIB, and share her personal experience and triumph with effectively managing the condition.

Lyne Scott, MD, Director of the Los Angeles Breathmobile® and Chief of the Division of Allergy and Immunology at LAC+USC Medical Center indicates that the mobile unit plans to establish an agreement with St. Michael’s in early February to begin providing routine screenings and treatment to their students aboard their Breathmobile® unit, with follow-up care to commence every 6-8 weeks.

The Breathmobile® an “asthma clinic on wheels,” provides diagnosis, treatment, medications and education for children with asthma and allergies at their school site. The project was developed in partnership with the California Chapter of the Asthma & Allergy Foundation of America and Los Angeles County+USC to address the rising morbidity rates of asthma in high risk disadvantaged children. Evaluation studies of the Breathmobile® have demonstrated dramatic improvement for patients treated on the Breathmobile® including: fewer emergency room visits, improved pulmonary function, a decrease in school absenteeism and an improved quality of life.

The LAC+USC Breathmobile® Program which began some 15 years ago in November 1995, has treated over 10,000 children and have successfully documented that 80% of children receiving care in their program attain well-controlled asthma by their third visit to the Breathmobile®.

Founded in 1878, Los Angeles County LAC+USC Healthcare Network (LAC+USC) is the nation’s largest academic institution. It is one of the largest acute care hospitals in America and has been the primary facility of the University of Southern California School of Medicine since 1885. As the largest single provider of healthcare in the County, LAC+USC provides the community with more than 28 percent of its trauma care.

The Asthma & Allergy Foundation of America – California Chapter serves as the premiere organization dedicated to controlling asthma and allergic diseases for millions of sufferers through education, medical research and increasing public awareness of the severity of asthma and allergic diseases.

For more information on EIB Active™ please visitwww.Breathmobile®.org to learn more about the Breathmobile® Program.