School-based Asthma Care for Teens (SB-ACT)

Overview

The goal of this study is to evaluate the widespread implementation of a developmentally appropriate preventive asthma care intervention for urban teens. The School Based Asthma Care for Teens (SB-ACT) program includes two core components: 1) a trial of directly observed therapy (DOT) to allow the teen to experience the potential benefits from adhering to guideline-based asthma treatment, and 2) a developmentally appropriate Motivational Interviewing (MI) Counseling Intervention to help the teen transition to independent long-term medication adherence. The investigators hypothesize that teens receiving the SB-ACT program will 1) experience less asthma-related morbidity than an asthma education (AE) attention-control comparison group, and 2) have improved adherence, less urgent healthcare use, less absenteeism, improved quality of life, and reduced FeNO compared to AE. The investigators also hypothesize that participants receiving DOT-only will have improved asthma-related outcomes immediately following their DOT trial vs. teens receiving AE, but will not have sustained, clinically significant improvement in outcomes once the DOT phase is complete. This represents a unique opportunity to build upon existing community relationships with an innovative and developmentally focused program to improve asthma outcomes for urban teens.

Study Type

  • Study Type: Interventional
  • Study Design
    • Allocation: Randomized
    • Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment
    • Primary Purpose: Health Services Research
    • Masking: Single (Outcomes Assessor)
  • Study Primary Completion Date: March 2020

Interventions

  • Behavioral: School-Based Asthma Care for Teens (SB-ACT)
  • Behavioral: Directly Observed Therapy
  • Behavioral: Asthma Education

Arms, Groups and Cohorts

  • Experimental: School-Based Asthma Care for Teens (SB-ACT)
    • SB-ACT consists of 2 components: Motivational Interviewing (MI) and Directly Observed Therapy (DOT) For the first 6-8 weeks, the teen will visit the school nurse to receive a daily dose of preventive asthma medication as directly observed therapy (DOT). The purpose of DOT is to establish a relationship with the nurse, learn proper medication technique, and experience potential benefits of consistent preventive therapy. The second component, Motivational Interviewing (MI) counseling , will start 4-6 weeks after the start of DOT. A counselor will conduct 3 in-person MI sessions with the teen at school to enhance the teen’s motivation to adhere to their asthma treatment plan. The 3 sessions consist of an initial 40 minute counseling session (4-6 weeks after start of DOT), and two 30 minute follow-up sessions 2 and 6 weeks later. This component consists of an evidence-based self-management program to help the teen begin to transition to independence with preventive medication use.
  • Active Comparator: Directly Observed Therapy
    • For the first 6-8 weeks after enrollment, the teen will visit the school nurse once a day to receive a daily dose of preventive asthma medication as directly observed therapy (DOT).
  • Active Comparator: Asthma Education
    • Asthma educators will provide an in-school asthma education program that will match the time and attention of the MI counseling portion of the primary intervention. Each teen will receive three 1-on-1 educational sessions at school, and sessions will cover 3 main topics: 1) lung physiology and asthma basics, 2) triggers, symptoms, and warning signs, and 3) medications and self-advocacy.

Clinical Trial Outcome Measures

Primary Measures

  • Average Number of Days Without Asthma Symptoms (Symptom Free Days) During Post-intervention Follow-up Interviews (3, 5 and 7 Months)
    • Time Frame: Average number of symptom free days, over 2 weeks, averaged across 3, 5, and 7 month post-intervention follow-up assessments.
    • The primary outcome measure is asthma morbidity between groups. The investigators will measure asthma morbidity by looking at the average number of days without asthma symptoms (symptom free days) over 2 weeks, during the post-intervention follow-up assessments (3, 5 and 7 months post baseline). Symptom free days are defined as 24 hour periods of no asthma symptoms including, coughing, wheezing, tightness in the chest or shortness of breath. Reported data reflects the number of symptom free days over 2 weeks averaged across 3, 5, and 7 month post-intervention follow-up assessments.

Participating in This Clinical Trial

Inclusion Criteria

  • Physician-diagnosed asthma – Persistent asthma or poor asthma control (based on NHLBI guidelines). – Attending secondary school in Rochester City School District Exclusion Criteria:

  • Inability to speak and understand English – No access to a phone for follow-up surveys – Diagnosed developmental or intellectual disability – Other significant medical conditions, including congenital heart disease, cystic fibrosis, or other chronic lung disease, that could interfere with the assessment of asthma-related measures. – Teens in foster care or other situations in which consent cannot be obtained from a guardian.

Gender Eligibility: All

Minimum Age: 12 Years

Maximum Age: 16 Years

Are Healthy Volunteers Accepted: No

Investigator Details

  • Lead Sponsor
    • University of Rochester
  • Collaborator
    • National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
  • Provider of Information About this Clinical Study
    • Principal Investigator: Jill Halterman, Professor – University of Rochester

References

Frey SM, Fagnano M, Mammen JR, Halterman JS. Health-related internet use among adolescents with uncontrolled persistent asthma. J Asthma. 2021 Dec;58(12):1610-1615. doi: 10.1080/02770903.2020.1827420. Epub 2020 Oct 7.

Stern J, Chen M, Jusko TA, Fagnano M, Jarvinen KM, Halterman JS. Food allergy in at-risk adolescents with asthma: A key area for focus. Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol. 2020 Oct;125(4):405-409.e1. doi: 10.1016/j.anai.2020.06.004. Epub 2020 Jun 10.

Okelo SO, Bilderback AL, Fagnano M, Halterman JS. Validity of asthma disease direction, bother, and risk as self-reported asthma morbidity measures in urban teens. J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract. 2020 Mar;8(3):1129-1131.e2. doi: 10.1016/j.jaip.2019.09.026. Epub 2019 Oct 9. No abstract available.

Frey SM, Jones MR, Goldstein NPN, Fagnano M, Halterman JS. Comparing inhaled medications reported by adolescents with persistent asthma and their caregivers. J Asthma. 2020 Sep;57(9):999-1005. doi: 10.1080/02770903.2019.1631342. Epub 2019 Jul 2.

Shankar M, Fagnano M, Blaakman SW, Rhee H, Halterman JS. Depressive Symptoms Among Urban Adolescents with Asthma: A Focus for Providers. Acad Pediatr. 2019 Aug;19(6):608-614. doi: 10.1016/j.acap.2018.12.004. Epub 2018 Dec 20.

Jones MR, Frey SM, Riekert K, Fagnano M, Halterman JS. Transition Readiness for Talking With Providers in Urban Youth With Asthma: Associations With Medication Management. J Adolesc Health. 2019 Feb;64(2):265-271. doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2018.08.026. Epub 2018 Oct 30.

Okelo SO, Bilderback AL, Fagnano M, Halterman JS. Validation of Asthma Control Assessment Among Urban Adolescents Using the Asthma Control and Communication Instrument. J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract. 2019 Mar;7(3):962-968.e1. doi: 10.1016/j.jaip.2018.10.001. Epub 2018 Oct 11.

Frey SM, Jones MR, Goldstein N, Riekert K, Fagnano M, Halterman JS. Knowledge of Inhaled Therapy and Responsibility for Asthma Management Among Young Teens With Uncontrolled Persistent Asthma. Acad Pediatr. 2018 Apr;18(3):317-323. doi: 10.1016/j.acap.2018.01.006. Epub 2018 Jan 31.

Citations Reporting on Results

Halterman JS, Riekert KA, Fagnano M, Tremblay PJ, Blaakman SW, Tajon R, Wang H, Borrelli B. Effect of the School-Based Asthma Care for Teens (SB-ACT) program on asthma morbidity: a 3-arm randomized controlled trial. J Asthma. 2022 Mar;59(3):494-506. doi: 10.1080/02770903.2020.1856869. Epub 2021 Jan 8.

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