INTRODUCTION:  The mainstay of asthma management is out-patient care.  Limited asthmatic data have been collected directly from HCP.  Standard records do not routinely capture all desired data.  Real-time out-patient data collection directly from HCP can be useful.

METHODS: Forms developed in Pendragon,™ data collected with synchronized periodic exportation to a centralized database. Demographic, asthma severity, detailed medication history, pulmonary function tests (PFT) & visit characteristics were obtained.  Entry efficiency was maximized for 42 data items via pick lists in a pre-study phase.  Clinicians were trained.  Data were assessed for inconsistencies.

RESULTS: 384 asthma Pt from 13 HCP at 9 practices April-October'00 (bimodal distribution, peaks June 20% & October 19%).  56% had new asthma symptoms.  Mean entry time 5.0' (range 1.8-20.1, electronically clocked).  Entry time was longer for more severe asthmatics (5.3' moderate/severe, 4.8' intermittent/mild, T-test p=.04), & for nurse practitioners (8.5') and attendings (6.8') vs. fellows (4.6') and staff (4.2').  PFT data were entered for 97% of adult (n=258), 95% teen (n=40), 89% pediatric (5-12,  n=53) & 4% pre-school (<5, n=33).  Clinical asthma severity, steroid & anti-leukotriene use correlated with PFT.  Barriers were identified.

CONCLUSIONS: PDA data collection were feasible & efficient in wide range of settings.  Data appear reliable & internally consistent.  Detection & correction of potential inconsistencies were labor-intensive/time-consuming, and thus is not practical with our methodology.  Busy clinicians viewed 5' per Pt as too long, but sacrificing detail can reduce entry time.  PDA offer potential in a wide variety of studies; careful pre-testing remains mandatory.