Pediatric Asthma Center at the University of Florida

According to the Center for Disease Control, an estimated 9.6 million children under age 18, or 13.1 percent, have been diagnosed with asthma during their lifetimes, and more than 320,000 children in Florida have asthma. The University of Florida Pediatric Asthma Center of Excellence, or PACE, is a multidisciplinary team at the forefront of comprehensive asthma care and advancement through research. Our team includes pulmonologists, allergists, respiratory therapists, hospitalists, pediatric intensivists, nurse practitioners, nurse leaders, emergency physicians, clinical pharmacists, a pharmacogenetecist, certified asthma educators and social workers. Specifically, this center was founded to advance current concepts regarding the treatment and prevention of asthma and allergic diseases in children.

PACE Mission

• Provide patient-centered, culturally sensitive, evidence based, outcome driven and compassionate medical care of the highest quality
• Improve asthma care while decreasing emergency room visits, hospitalizations, the need for short courses of oral steroids and school absences due to asthma
• Provide open and speedy access to asthma care including pulmonary appointments and emergency access to asthma management and treatment
• Develop innovative approaches to treatment through research and discovery
• Provide patient, parent, health care professional and community education
• Build partnerships with surrounding providers and organizations both statewide and nationally

About Us

The University of Florida Pediatric Center of Excellence provides cutting edge and personalized asthma care for each patient. Whether a childneeds to learn the details of how to take medications or needs a new specialized life-saving procedure, PACE provides the resources. The Personalized Medicine Asthma Clinic (PMAC) is offered once a week. It follows complex asthma patients and provides advanced diagnostic services such as exhaled nitric oxide, impulse oscillometry to measure airway function in preschool children as well as exercise and mannitol challenge tests in addition to the typical testing and care, which includes assessing adherence to medications. Also, we can perform specialized testing, called pharmacokinetics, to determine how medications get absorbed and eliminated from a patient that is failing to respond or is having adverse effects from recommended doses.

Through research we will continue to improve the care provided and contribute to advances in asthma management by studying how genetics affect response to asthma medications. We are committed to providing our patients with the necessary resources for optimal asthma health and the best quality of life.