Platform Leader: Dr. Teresa To

Team members

Dr. Andrea Gershon
Dr. Chris Licskai
Dr. Diane Lougheed
Hong Chen (PhD Candidate)
Paul Villeneuve (PhD Candidate)
Eric Crighton (PhD Candidate)
Yushan Su (PhD Candidate)

Goals

• To use population-based epidemiological data to measure respiratory health effects of individual air pollutants and climate change
• To identify high-risk subpopulations (age, sex, smokers) or clusters (rural/urban living, SES) to determine the effects of different air pollutants and climate mixtures on the development, exacerbations and progression of asthma and COPD.

Publications

To, T., Zhu, J., Carlsten, C., Larsen, K., Ryckman, K., Feldman, L.Y., Crighton, E., Lougheed, M.D., Licskai, C., Villeneuve, P.J., Yushan, S., Sadatsafavi, M., Gershon, A.S. and The Canadian Respiratory Research Network.  Do Community, Environmental Factors, and Access to Care Influence the Risks of ACOS and Mortality?  European Respiratory Journal, invited to resubmit, May 2017.

Larsen K, Faulkner GEJ, Boak A, Hamilton HA, Mann RE, Irving HM, To T and The Canadian Respiratory Research Network. Looking beyond cigarettes: Are Ontario Adolescents with Asthma Less Likely to Smoke E-Cigarettes, Marijuana, Waterpipes or Tobacco Cigarettes? Respir Med. 2016 Nov;120:10-15. doi: 10.1016/j.rmed.2016.09.013. Epub 2016 Sep 20.

History of Asthma in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. A Comparative Study of Economic Burden
Sadatsafavi M, Tavakoli H, Kendzerska T, Gershon A, To T, Aaron SD, FitzGerald JM; Canadian Respiratory Research Network. History of Asthma in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. A Comparative Study of Economic Burden. Ann Am Thorac Soc. 2016 Feb;13(2):188-96. doi: 10.1513/AnnalsATS.201508-507OC. PMID: 26599154

Progression from Asthma to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD): Is Air Pollution a Risk Factor?
To T, Zhu J, Larsen K, Simatovic J, Feldman L, Ryckman K, Gershon A, Lougheed MD, Licskai C, Chen H, Villeneuve PJ, Crighton E, Su Y, Sadatsafavi M, Williams D, Carlsten C; Canadian Respiratory Research Network. Progression from Asthma to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD): Is Air Pollution a Risk Factor?  Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2016 Mar 7. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 26950751