Introduction from Luis Salmun

The physical and financial toll of pulmonary disease is staggering.  Each year, asthma accounts for 500,000 hospitalizations, 217,000 emergency room visits and 10.5 million physician office visits at a total cost of $18 billion.  Meanwhile, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is the fourth leading cause of death in the United States .  These two conditions alone affect 44 million Americans.

The extent of these costs requires a concerted effort to address this important public health issue.  Toward that end, Medco researchers are partnering with leading researchers in the field to study patient response to medications used in the treatment of pulmonary conditions with our current focus on asthma. Controlling asthma presents a major challenge to both clinicians and patients.  We hope that through this research, we will better understand a larger piece of the treatment puzzle and effect changes in asthma prevention and management approaches that will lead to improved clinical outcomes, fewer hospitalizations and lower health care costs.

Luis Salmun, M.D.

A specialist in pediatric allergy and immunology, Luis Salmun is the National Practice Leader for Medco's Pulmonary and Immunology Therapeutic Resource Centers ®.