Allergy & Asthma Network, ALAA to increase awareness on life-threatening latex allergies

Allergy & Asthma Network, a leading nonprofit patient education organization, is pleased to announce that its Anaphylaxis Community Expert (ACE) volunteer program is partnering with the American Latex Allergy Association (ALAA) to increase awareness about life-threatening latex allergies.

Latex allergies impact 8-12 percent of health care workers and 1-6 percent of the U.S. population, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC). In addition, 68 percent of children with spina bifida have latex allergy. ACE volunteers are perfectly positioned in communities across the country to reinforce ALAA's core messages about latex allergy awareness, avoidance and education.

"With a combined 50 years of serving patients with allergies, the missions of Allergy & Asthma Network and ALAA complement each other well," says Tonya Winders, Allergy & Asthma Network president and CEO. "In the past five years, the ACE program has directly educated more than 60,000 people through community awareness and education activities. This partnership will leverage our organizations' unique strengths and areas of expertise."

"Partnering with the ACE program is very exciting for ALAA, as we broaden our reach to help more patients learn to manage their latex allergy," say ALAA co-founders Sue Lockwood and Marsha Smith.

In addition to the award-winning Anaphylaxis: A Guide for All of Us magazine and Epi Everywhere! Every Day!™ program, ACE volunteers will distribute ALAA's Living With Latex Allergy, an evidence-based and medically reviewed booklet to help health care professionals and latex allergy patients better understand the condition, including what triggers symptoms and what is needed to manage reactions.

"This partnership is a natural alliance, blending the necessary information on latex allergy in the context of identifying and managing anaphylaxis," says Michael Zacharisen, MD, a board-certified allergist, ACE volunteer and ALAA Board member from Bozeman, MT. "I'm confident the awareness raised will benefit the public and medical community alike."