2019 Educational Objectives
Conference educational objectives are to recognize, discuss and debate the following:
- Understand the various ways in which patients encounter allergy-related misinformation online.
- Understand the origins surrounding misconceptions specific to allergic conditions.
- Anticipate and actively address patient confusion and misinformation during clinical encounters.
- Determine if immunoglobulin E (IgE, a type of antibody) testing is indicated based on important elements in a patient’s clinical history.
- Avoid using indiscriminate panels of food allergen IgE tests when evaluating patients.
- Understand why IgE results are often falsely elevated.
- Recognize skin prick and serum IgE test limitations in diagnosing food allergy.
- Understand how food challenges help to diagnose food allergy, as well as to determine if a patient has developed a tolerance to a previously diagnosed food allergy.
- Incorporate shared decision making when discussing risks and benefits of oral food challenges with patient and families.
Asthma / Respiratory
- Understand biologic agent mechanisms of action and indications in upper and lower airway disease.
- Differentiate chronic rhinosinusitis from other causes of head and facial pain by demonstrating inflammation in the nose and paranasal sinuses.
- Understand the different etiologies of chronic sinusitis and how treatment differs depending on cause.
- Learn how to perform spirometry as a common test to assess lung function.
- Understand the role spirometry can play in managing asthma.
- Learn how to interpret spirometry.
- Understand the varied determinants of persistent childhood asthma.
- Use the Pediatric Asthma Yardstick to assess and guide step-up therapy in childhood asthma.
- Distinguish when constant versus intermittent therapy is appropriate in children with mild asthma.
- Describe the typical presentation of patients with common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) including the autoimmunity and inflammatory features that can accompany this diagnosis.
- Explain approaches to diagnose and treat complications of CVID.
- Describe an approach to CVID genetic testing that accounts for the clinical presentation and therapeutic options.
- Recognize clinical patterns of common primary immunodeficiency diseases (PIDD).
- Learn how to initiate and interpret PIDD screening laboratory studies.
- Recognize PIDD treatment modalities, dilemmas and strategies.
- Understand Immune-mediated adverse drug reactions as an uncommon but potentially life-threatening occurrence.
- Review presentation of drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS); Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS) and Toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN).
- Identify culprit medication and risk factors for adverse drug reactions.
- Identify when to refer a patient for penicillin allergy testing.
- Understand the importance of clearing a patient of penicillin allergy label.
- Define and understand the importance of antibiotic stewardship.
- Identify three common opportunities for antibiotic stewardship.
- Describe three common toxicities or side effects of antibiotic treatment.
Skin / Swelling
- Describe the symptoms and causes of atopic dermatitis (eczema).
- Determine an approach to evaluating and treating severe atopic dermatitis.
- Understand the role and importance of allergy testing in atopic dermatitis.
- Review the Atopic Dermatitis Yardstick, a series of practical treatment recommendations incorporating the latest research and therapies.
- Identify urticaria and angioedema phenotypes, the characteristics determined by genetic and environmental influences.
- Recognize urticaria and angioedema clinical manifestations.
- Explain proper management of urticaria and angioedema patients.
- Implement updated urticaria and angioedema treatment guidelines.