re: Ann: Appendix 4C - Third Quarter Cash Rep... This is from...

re: Ann: Appendix 4C - Third Quarter Cash Rep... This is from the "Stuff" news web site. NZ newspapers online. This was posted today

A new smartphone application will allow asthma sufferers to send information to their general practitioners at the push of a button.

The Breathe Easy application will be launched today by Asthma New Zealand to mark World Asthma Day.

Asthma NZ chief executive Gerry Hanna said the free app could help reduce absences from school or work, cut hospital admissions and reduce asthma-related deaths.

"Smartphones have changed the way people manage their lives, and we recognise the role they can play in achieving better health outcomes," he said.

The app lets users check their peakflow readings, keep a symptoms diary and send data straight to the doctor.

Hanna said doctors would be able to make sure people were managing their asthma properly.

Breathe Easy would also be a valuable research tool, Hanna said, as people would record the environmental factors that triggered their asthma attacks.

The app has been in development for a year.

Christchurch designer Ashleigh Rolston has suffered from asthma for 15 years.

Breathe Easy would help those with chronic symptoms more than people with mild symptoms, she said.

"You can keep your doctor constantly informed of what's happening with your asthma, rather than trying to remember when you book appointments to see your GP," she said.

"You can also map how your asthma is going and look back to see if there are any patterns and perhaps see if certain things cause your asthma to worsen."

Wonder where that leaves us?