It is a trademarked, patented (U.S. Patent # 7,802,443), U.S. FDA approved Class II medical re-circulating air cleaner, built by Air Innovations, Inc. (North Syracuse, NY) to provide improved indoor air quality in the bedrooms of asthmatic children. Units to be used in the proposed study have a 99.97% efficient filter for particles 0.3 µm in size. The device provides a clean air delivery rate (CADR) of 9 per hour with 1.8 of them being outdoor air.

The St. Georges Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) is an established, clinically relevant measure of respiratory symptoms, activity level, and impacts on daily life, and is a measure of functional status regularly used and validated in COPD patient populations. The questionnaire is a fixed format 50 item survey completed by the study subject asking questions in three parts: 1) levels of symptomatology including frequency of wheezing, cough, sputum production, and breathlessness, including the duration of episodes of wheeze and breathlessness, 2) physical activities that may be caused or are limited by breathlessness, and 3) impacts of these symptoms. It is a self-assessment of respiratory symptoms and functional status, and provides a quantification of the impacts of airflow limitation on health and well-being. The scores range from 0 to 100 with higher number indicating worse outcomes.

The St. Georges Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) is an established, clinically relevant measure of respiratory symptoms, activity level, and impacts on daily life, and is a measure of functional status regularly used and validated in COPD patient populations. The questionnaire is a fixed format 50 item survey completed by the study subject asking questions in three parts: 1) levels of symptomatology including frequency of wheezing, cough, sputum production, and breathlessness, including the duration of episodes of wheeze and breathlessness, 2) physical activities that may be caused or are limited by breathlessness, and 3) impacts of these symptoms. It is a self-assessment of respiratory symptoms and functional status, and provides a quantification of the impacts of airflow limitation on health and well-being. The scores range from 0 to 100 with higher number indicating worse outcomes.

The St. Georges Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) is an established, clinically relevant measure of respiratory symptoms, activity level, and impacts on daily life, and is a measure of functional status regularly used and validated in COPD patient populations. The questionnaire is a fixed format 50 item survey completed by the study subject asking questions in three parts: 1) levels of symptomatology including frequency of wheezing, cough, sputum production, and breathlessness, including the duration of episodes of wheeze and breathlessness, 2) physical activities that may be caused or are limited by breathlessness, and 3) impacts of these symptoms. It is a self-assessment of respiratory symptoms and functional status, and provides a quantification of the impacts of airflow limitation on health and well-being. The scores range from 0 to 100 with higher number indicating worse outcomes.

Plasma C-reactive protein (CRP) is a measure of systemic inflammation, and is an acute phase protein known to increase in the hours and days following an inflammatory stimulus. C-reactive protein will be measured in plasma obtained from whole blood using standard procedures.

All participants

The St. Georges Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) is an established, clinically relevant measure of respiratory symptoms, activity level, and impacts on daily life, and is a measure of functional status regularly used and validated in COPD patient populations. The questionnaire is a fixed format 50 item survey completed by the study subject asking questions in three parts: 1) levels of symptomatology including frequency of wheezing, cough, sputum production, and breathlessness, including the duration of episodes of wheeze and breathlessness, 2) physical activities that may be caused or are limited by breathlessness, and 3) impacts of these symptoms. It is a self-assessment of respiratory symptoms and functional status, and provides a quantification of the impacts of airflow limitation on health and well-being. The scores range from 0 to 100 with higher number indicating worse outcomes.

Baseline data was not collected on one subject in the HEPAirX air filter arm.

HEPAirX air filter: It is a trademarked, patented (U.S. Patent # 7,802,443), U.S. FDA approved Class II medical re-circulating air cleaner, built by Air Innovations, Inc. (North Syracuse, NY) to provide improved indoor air quality in the bedrooms of asthmatic children. Units to be used in the proposed study have a 99.97% efficient filter for particles 0.3 µm in size. The device provides a clean air delivery rate (CADR) of 9 per hour with 1.8 of them being outdoor air.