Spokane-based technology company Urbanova and Washington State University’s College of Nursing have partnered to design the mobile application, U-Track, to help mitigate and reduce health risks to young adults with asthma during wildfire events.

Working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to build upon its application Smoke Sense, which tracks wildfires in the U.S., Urbanova and WSU teamed up to implement additional features such as a spirometer-capture portion of the application. A spirometer is a handheld device used to assess lung function by measuring airflow during inhalation and exhalation.

Julie Postma, professor and associate dean of research at the College of Nursing, is the primary investigator for the project.

WSU and Urbanova received an exploratory developmental research grant of $382,500 for the project from the National Institutes of Nursing Research that will continue through the end of March. The team has also submitted a proposal for a larger grant from the NINR Health Promotion in Communities Study Section. The grant request is for nearly $3 million over a five-year period and is up for review this month, says Postma.

“Annually, wildfires are starting earlier and lasting longer,” Postma asserts during a recent Wake Up With Research presentation. “We expect wildfires will increase in prevalence and severity in years to come.”

According to the Washington Smoke Blog, almost 80% of the Washington population was exposed to unhealthy air for five to nine days in 2020, with some being exposed for 10 to 14 days.

Wildfire smoke contains carcinogens, but of particular concern is fine particulate matter known as PM 2.5, which can be inhaled deep into people’s lungs and can even enter their bloodstreams, says Postma.

Although certain levels of PM 2.5 can cause damage in other ways, the primary concern is systemic inflammation and an oxidative stress response, which occurs when a biological system is unable to detoxify and repair itself, resulting in cell and tissue damage, she explains.

For asthmatics, it’s especially problematic, she notes.

“Among people with asthma, exposure to fine particulate matter from wildfire smoke is associated with a pyramid of effects,” says Postma. Low levels of PM 2.5 that are still within legal air pollution limits can cause increased asthma symptoms. So-called moderate levels of air pollution are associated with asthma-related emergency department visits and can even cause death, she asserts.

In the U.S., federal, state, and local agencies issue air quality alerts ranging from “good” to “hazardous” for five air pollutants, including PM 2.5, as measured using the Environmental Protection Agency’s Air Quality Index.

However, Postma contends AQI alerts lack evidence of effectiveness because there is little research that indicates whether people follow the guidelines.

“Air Quality alerts need to be communicated using modern channels, such as smart phone apps, versus highlighting on the evening news,” says Postma.

Urbanova focuses on collaborating to develop technology and strategies to enhance resilience and equity in midsize cities. The nonprofit primarily worked on the technical aspect of developing the app in collaboration with WSU.

Ross Bindler, the WSU project coordinator for the study, who worked closely with Urbanova to develop the app, says the development team hopes the app can remain free to anybody who wants to monitor their health.

He adds that the project received positive feedback from the participants who were given access to all features of the app, including access to the spirometer, air advisory alerts, and a message board.

“We’ve been working with Urbanova the last few months trying to build a more user-friendly interface for the app to be used in future studies,” he says. The app also includes a calendar feature to mark medication schedules and doctor visits.

However, an eight-week study doesn’t cover a long period of time for a chronic medical condition like asthma, says Bindler. In the future, WSU hopes to get two cohorts of participants: one with full access to the application for a year, and another with limited access to the application for a year.

Bindler says he and the team are hoping to receive additional funding and make U-Track a more user-friendly app that the average individual can use to track to manage symptoms.

“Especially out here in the West, we get such bad wildfire seasons now that it can be useful for just about anybody,” he says.