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Personnel

• Pamela Arellano
• Dr Mario A Calvo
• Maria Ines Guarda
• Dr Adriana Kyling
• Francisco Marin
• Dr Maria Ines Sanhueza
• Dr Alexis Strickler

The city of Valdivia is located 850 Km south of Santiago, the capital of Chile. We learned about the ISAAC project Phase I, from Javier Mallol, MD, Project Coordinator in Chile who contacted and motivated us to get involved in the project. It was quite appealing for us to participate in a study using the same methodology and a validated questionnaire, to assess and to confirm the data the daily practice was providing us: the high frequency of the allergic diseases and their impact in the quality of life of those who suffered them. We quickly understood the importance of this Project and together with Nurse Pamela Arellano, planned the work. In that period, the population of Valdivia was about 140,000 inhabitants without centralized information on the number of students attending school and on the number of students with the required age to be included in the Project (6-7 years and 13-14 years).

The only way to obtain the required data was to visit every school, and then we thought that we would not have the minimum number of patients required in each age group (3,000 each). Therefore, we contacted colleagues in neighboring cities of Valdivia with similar population group regarding ethnic, cultural end economical characteristics. In Osorno Adriana Kyling, MD and Maria Ines Sanhueza, MD and in Puerto Montt, Alexis Strickler, MD. actively participated in the project.

Our enthusiasm and the excellent support and collaboration of the colleagues who directed and direct the Project allowed us to succeed. The collaboration of teachers, parents and students who participated in the project was fundamental to carry out the interviews to the parents attending to the class meetings and to the students within their school schedules.

The incorporation of the collected data into the program was possible due to the orientation provided by Francisco Marin, statistician and to the work of Maria Ines Guarda, secretary.

The study in phase III, carried out 8 years later, encountered a different reality in our city. There was centralized information about the number of students and their age group that allowed us to plan the work in Valdivia, exclusively. Phase III was carried out the same as the previous Phase I and with the same group of professionals. The very good collaboration of the participants in phase I was similar in this phase of the project, thus facilitating the adequate accomplishment of the project’s goals.

Data obtained in this very important study was made available to the authorities and it has influenced positively in the planning of different sanitary policies. The investigators participating in the project feel that we have acquired great training on planning and carrying out research works.

The research team participating in the ISAAC project wishes to thank to all of those who have led it and that allowed us to participate in it.