Notice Number: NOT-HL-14-203
Update: The following update relating to this announcement has been issued:
- January 21, 2014 - NHLBI Announces an Extension of the Response Date for NOT-HL-14-203 Request for Information (RFI). See Notice NOT-HL-14-208.
Key Dates
Release Date: January 10, 2014
NOT-HL-14-208
Issued by
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Purpose
This Notice is a Request for Information (RFI) for topics to be considered by the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program (NAEPP) for a potential systematic review of the scientific literature and development of updated recommendations on selected topics from the Expert Panel Report 3: Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Asthma http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/asthma/). This RFI solicits information from individuals from the scientific, medical, and patient/public communities with an interest in asthma to help identify the most important topics for such review.
BACKGROUND
Asthma is a major public health problem in the United States, affecting over 25 million individuals, including over 7 million children. Total costs for asthma care are over $57 billion a year, with emergency department visits and hospitalizations and lost productivity accounting for a large portion of those costs. NAEPP, coordinated by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHBLI) and comprised of representatives from over 36 professional societies, patient advocacy and non-profit organizations, and federal agencies, was initiated in March 1989 to address the substantial problem of asthma morbidity and mortality in the United States.
The goals of the NAEPP are to:
- Raise awareness of patients, health professionals, and the public that asthma is a serious chronic disease.
- Ensure the recognition of the symptoms of asthma by patients, families, and the public and the appropriate diagnosis by health professionals.
- Ensure the effective control of asthma by encouraging a partnership among patients, physicians, and other health professionals through evidence-based treatment and education programs that can prevent asthma morbidity.
To achieve these goals, the NAEPP develops evidence-based clinical practice guidelines to translate research findings on asthma to improve asthma care and the health and quality of life for people who have asthma. These clinical practice guidelines serve as a foundation for numerous programs at the national, state, and local levels for clinicians, patients, their families and communities to improve asthma management.
NAEPP guidelines must be kept up to date to ensure that patients, health care professionals, and programs use recommendations based on the best current scientific evidence. The first Expert Panel Report (EPR I) on the Diagnosis and Management of Asthma was published in February 1991 and updated in 1997 (EPR-2), 2002 (with selected topics only), and 2007 (EPR- 3). The NAEPP is now considering whether an update would be appropriate.
INFORMATION REQUESTED
To guide NAEPP discussions, the NHLBI invites individuals from the scientific, medical, and patient/public communities with an interest in asthma to suggest topics for the NAEPP that would warrant a systematic review of the scientific literature and a possible update of guidelines. As a reminder, the current broad topics, of effective asthma management that are presented in the EPR-3 Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Asthma are:
Assessment and monitoring (e.g., diagnosis, pulmonary function testing, measure of asthma severity and asthma control); Education (e.g., patient education for asthma management skills; clinician education); Control of Environmental Factors that make asthma worse (e.g., allergens, pollutants, and irritants), and co-morbid conditions (e.g., rhinitis and sinusitis, obesity);
Medications (e.g., quick relief and long term control medications; the stepwise approach to long-term asthma management; managing exacerbations, emergency department and hospital based care).
Information is requested, but not limited to, whether topics in the current guidelines warrant review because new scientific evidence may indicate the need for updating, whether you have questions or concerns about the current topics, or whether you suggest new topics for consideration.
RESPONSES
Please submit all responses by January 16, 2014. Respond by e-mail to: Nhlbi_dld@nhlbi.nih.gov. Please include the text RFI Reply in your subject line.
To facilitate review of your response, please indicate up to 5 topics or issues that you deem important for the NAEPP to consider for a potential systematic literature review and update of the guidelines. It will be helpful if you are as specific as possible. For example: "Topic: Medication: the Stepwise Approach for Children; Question to address within the topic: If a 5-11 year old child’s asthma is not controlled by low dose inhaled corticosteroids, what is the best way to manage their asthma?".
Please note: Response to this RFI is voluntary. This RFI is for information and planning purposes only and should not be construed as a solicitation, an obligation, or an endorsement on the part of NHLBI or the NAEPP. The NHLBI does not plan to award a grant or contract to pay for the preparation of any information submitted or for the NHLBI’s use of such information. Acknowledgment of receipt of information may not be made, nor will respondents be notified of the NHLBI or the NAEPP’s evaluation and use of the information received. No basis for claims against the NHLBI or the NAEPP shall arise as a result of a response to this request for information, or the NHLBI or NAEPP’s use of such information as part of a prioritizing and/or synthesizing process, or in developing specifications for any future announcements. Given the public nature of the RFI and the transparency of the asthma clinical guidelines process, the NHLBI or the NAEPP cannot guarantee the confidentiality of the information provided. Any proprietary information should be so indicated.
Inquiries
Responses to this RFI should be submitted to the email address noted above in Responses. Questions about this RFI should be directed to:
Virginia Taggart, MPH
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Telephone: 301-435-0202
Email: nhlbi_dld@nhlbi.nih.gov
and Human Services (HHS)
