Environmental Lung Center
History of the Environmental Lung Center
Upon joining National Jewish in 1978 as the Chair of the Department of Medicine, Dr. Reuben Cherniack developed the concept of the Environmental Lung Center to challenge the scientific community to better serve the field of environmental and occupational pulmonary disease. To accomplish his goal of combining strong, basic research and clinical programs, Dr. Cherniack formed a new Division of Occupational Medicine while also promoting such new initiatives as the Specialized Center of Research program in interstitial lung disease-a program that strengthened the institution's mycobacterial and asthma research.
In 1993, to increase its focus on air pollution and indoor air quality and aerosol science, the Occupational Medicine Division became the Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.
A cornerstone of the Environmental Lung Center, the newly designed Division of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences enjoys faculty expertise in two major areas: Environmental Toxicology and Occupational/Environmental Health.
Central Concept of the Environmental Lung Center
The present focus of Center research is to improve understanding of the adverse health effects of air pollution on patients with pre-existing pulmonary disease and to determine the mechanisms of the effects of air pollution on the respiratory system. Because the main target of air pollution is the respiratory tract, some Center research examines the effects of air pollution on individuals with chronic lung disease (asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease).
The Environmental Lung Center Offers Unique Opportunities to Study Lung Disease
Due to the existence of the Kunsberg School at National Jewish Medical and Research Center, researchers enjoy a unique opportunity to study a group of asthmatic children in a controlled environment, monitoring exposure, symptoms, physiologic function, and medication use. In addition, National Jewish has an extensive research program in asthma and expects to determine in the future the mechanisms whereby different pollutants affect the respiratory and immune systems and alter airway responsiveness.
Related to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients, researchers at National Jewish have access to a population of patients with moderate and severe emphysema who are undergoing pulmonary rehabilitation-some of whom will have volume reduction surgery for emphysema. This group of susceptible individuals provides a rare opportunity for relating symptoms, medication use, and physiology to changes in air pollution.
What About Air Pollution?
Learn about the special climate of Colorado and air pollution . You’ll also learn about air pollutants like cigarette smoke (active and passive or secondhand), particulate matter, ozone, nitrogen dioxide; their harmful effects on the body; and even things like who’s at greater risk from these air pollutants.
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