WATCH - Wessex Asthma Lifetime Cohort study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
WATCH - Wessex Asthma Lifetime Cohort study
IRAS ID
158443
Contact name
Ramesh Kurukulaaratchy
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
19 years, 10 months, 1 days
Research summary
Severe asthma is a significant problem for society and the NHS, accounting for a disproportionate amount of health expenditure, and hidden societal costs through disability, missed schooling / lost work days. Increasingly it has been realised that it is not a single condition, but is instead composed of numerous conditions which whilst similar superficially, are different on closer inspection (known as different ‘phenotypes’). These different clinical phenotypes may involve specific and different disease processes, leading to the concept of personalised therapy regimes to better target an individual’s disease. This is of particular relevance to emerging asthma therapies which may only be applicable to ‘allergic’ asthma or ‘non-allergic’ asthma, or increasing subdivisions thereof.
In addition, the organisation of Clinical Services for Severe Asthma is undergoing major change with the initiation of Specialised Commissioning of such Services by NHS England in 2014. A core requirement for Specialist Centres being commissioned under this process is the maintenance of accurate clinical disease registers which link to the BTS Difficult Asthma Registry and support collaborative research studies in the future.
The Difficult Asthma Clinic at Southampton currently cares for ~ 679 patients with problematic disease. We intend to initiate a comprehensively assessed Difficult Asthma Cohort by inviting all patients in our clinic to participate and contribute data gained through their clinical assessment, with the following benefits:
A) Support ongoing contribution to BTS Difficult Asthma Registry.
B) Satisfy National NHS specialist commissioning requirements for a database.
C) Provide real-life clinical characterisation of Difficult Asthma and it’s evolution in patients over time/in response to treatment, increasing our understanding in areas relevant to clinical practice.
D) Facilitate patients’ entry, should they be willing, into future therapeutic studies in Difficult Asthma, both locally and nationally. Their prior characterisation within the cohort would streamline their entry into such studies.REC name
West Midlands - Solihull Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/WM/1226
Date of REC Opinion
16 Jan 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion