Mobile Expert and Networking System for Systematic Analysis of Nutrition-Based Allergies - MENSSANA phases 1 & 2

Coordinating Institution: CRP Henri Tudor
Contracting Partner(s): Centre Hospitalier de Luxembourg , University of Cologne
Other Partner(s): Ärzteverband Deutscher Allergologen , Association Luxembourgeoise des Intolérants au Gluten , Cactus S.A. , CRP Henri Tudor , Deutscher Allergie- und Asthmabund e.V. (D) , Ecoinform (D) , Initiative Neurodermitiskrank Kanner an Erwuessener , Lycée Technique d'Ettelbrück , Lycée Technique Michel Lucius , Société Luxembourgeoise Dermato-Vénéréologie , University of Luxembourg , University of Trier (Dept. of Philology) , Vox Mobile
From: 01/10/2004
To: 30/06/2010
Budget: 800,000.00€
Contact(s): Rösch Norbert

Summary

Food allergy is a major public health problem in the western world. Due to a lack of therapeutic alternatives, the management of food allergies consists in educating the patient to avoid ingesting the responsible allergen. The MENSSANA project searches for new methods of supporting patients and health professionals by different means of computer and network technologies and to combine them within an integrated Allergy Information system. For diagnostic purpose, patients are required to keep food diaries to identify individual allergens in the daily food.

Significant numbers of paper diaries are fabricated and of poor diagnostic value. Computer based electronic diaries offer higher reliability, but the handling is often to complex and time consuming. Within MENSSANA a mobile device called Personal-Allergy-Assistant (PAA) has been developed. The PAA is a barcode-reading Smartphone and allows simple diary entries by scanning the food package’s EAN barcode. Automatic timestamps reduce potential data tampering and increase the data quality.

Even the food intake of non-packed food (e.g. fruits and vegetables) as well as pharmaceuticals (e.g. antihistamines) and experienced symptoms are stored in the electronic diary. The assessable time relationship between the consumed product and the experienced symptoms is of high value for diagnostics as well as for therapy control. In 2009 data analysis method for patient diaries has been improved significantly, based on the first results of the clinical study in Luxembourg. Ingredients lists of food products are of high importance for the MENSSANA project.

They are printed on the packages but food producers are not forced to provide this information in a computer readable way. MENSSANA has developed a public database system called WikiFood.eu to collect food information by volunteers and food producers. In 2009, the WikiFood community has registered users from more than 25 different countries. Information of about 14,000 food products is available online.

In co-operation with the German Patient association for Allergy and Asthma (Deutscher Allergie- und Asthmabund DAAB) and the University Hospital of Cologne (IMSIE) a new instrument (The BELANA questionnaire) has been developed to evaluate health economic burdens of patients with food allergy and to draw parallels to limitations in their Quality of Life. In 2009, this method has been successfully tested in a pilot trail with 50 patients and will now be furthermore used in an observation study, supported by DAAB and the German Federal Ministry for nutrition, agriculture and consumer protection (www.aktionsplan-allergie.de).

Refereed Scientific Publications:
  • Rösch N, Feidert F, Arens A, Harpes P, Plumer P, Feidert F, Mösges R. Telemedizinisch unterstütztes Diät- und Diagnosemanagement bei Nahrungsmittelallergie, Bulletin de la Société Médicale du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg. No.2/2009.
  • Roesch N, Arens A, Feidert F, Harpes P, Moesges R. Computerised identification of allergens in food product ingredient descriptions, Allergy (European Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology), Volume 64 Supplement 90, 363-364. 2009.
  • Arens-Volland A, Rösch N, Feidert F, Harpes P, Herbst R, Mösges R. ICT-supported Allergy and Diet management, Proceedings of the Med-e-Tel Conference, Luxembourg, 2009.
  • Arens A, Rösch N, Feidert F, Harpes P, Herbst R, Mösges R. Mobile electronic patient diaries with barcode based food identification for the treatment of food allergies. GMS Med Inform Biom Epidemiol. 4(3), Doc14. 2008.
  • Rösch N, Feidert F, Arens A, Mösges R. Barcode based food identification improves the value of electronic patient diaries in nutrition-based allergy. Proceedings of the 10th International Symposium on Immunological, Chemical and Clinical Problems of Food Allergy. MAY 26-29, 2008.
  • Roesch N, Arens A, Feidert F, Harpes P, Moesges R. ICT supported disease management in food-based allergy, Allergy (European Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology), Volume 63 Supplement 88: 586-587, 2008.
  • Rösch N, Feidert F, Arens A, Mösges R. MENSSANA Mobile Expert & Networking System for Systematical Analysis of Nutrition based Allergies, Allergy (European Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology), Volume 62 Supplement 83: 565-566, 2007.
  • Arens A, Herbst R, Schneider GJ, Rösch N. 1D-Barcode-Erkennung auf Mobiltelefonen mit eingebauter Kamera zur automatischen Erkennung von Lebensmitteln für das MENSSANA Projekt, Mensch - Maschine - Interaktion: Kongressband zum 2. Kongress Multimediatechnik, Institut für Multimediatechnik (Hrsg.). 2007.
Other Publications: ·
  • Oral presentation of MENSSANA at the IRL Forum (Innovative Retail Lab), a laboratory of the German Research Centre for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI)
  • Oral Presentation of MENSSANA results at Med-e-Tel 2009
  • Bronze Medal at Boston Consulting Group’s “Business@school” initiative for the MENSSANA supported “CanScan” Shopping Aid by the “Auguste Pattberg Gymnasium in Mosbach-Neckarelz, Germany
  • Stand on the scientific section MEDICA MEDIA of MEDICA 2009 congress and fair
  • Poster presentation of Norbert Rösch, Andreas Arens, Frank Feidert and Ralph Mösges at the XXVII Congress of the European Academy of Allergology and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) 2009 in Warsaw, Poland and a publication in the peer reviewed scientific journal "Allergy".
  • Interview Dr. Feidert on food based allergies Soziokulturelle Radio 100,7 · RTL Television Broadcast "Kaptial" about MENSSANA and WikiFood
  • Stand on the scientific section MEDICA MEDIA of MEDICA 2008 congress and fair · Conducting the Medica Media Workshop “Erfahrungen mit einem landesweiten Gesundheitsnetzwerk”, Düsseldorf, Germany
  • Presentation of Norbert Rösch on ICT supported Health Care and allergy management at the MEDICA 2008 · RTL Radio Lëtzebuerg, Interview with Pierre Plumer, Director of SANTEC, about MENSSANA and ICT supported Health Care in Luxembourg
  • Poster presentation of Norbert Rösch, Andreas Arens, Frank Feidert and Ralph Mösges at the XXVI Congress of the European Academy of Allergology and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) 2008 in Barcelona, Spain and a publication in the peer reviewed scientific journal "Allergy".
  • Presentation of Norbert Rösch about the MENSSANA ICT supported allergy management at the "10th International symposium on immunological, chemical and clinical problems of food allergies" in Parma/Italy
  • Presentation by Andreas Arens on MENSSANA at the MOCOMED 2008, Mobiles Computing in der Medizin, Stuttgart, Germany · German and English articles about WikiFood and MENSSANA and the financial support of the FNR has been added to the Wikipedia Encyclopedia.
  • Luxemburger Wort, 11/12/2007: Der „Personal Allergy Assistant“ und die Wikifood-Datenbank sind Teil des MENSSANA-Forschungsprojekts
  • Télécran, 08/12/2007: Das Kompetenzzentrum für Technologien im Gesundheitswesen des Forschungsinstituts „CRP Henri Tudor" hat in Zusammenarbeit mit dem „Centre Hospitalier de Luxembourg" und dem Institut für medizinische Statistik, Informatik und Epidemiologie der Universität Köln ein Gerät entwickelt, das Nahrungsmittel-Allergikern bei der Bewältigung ihres Alltags helfen kann.
  • RTL Luxembourg, News 04/12/2007 · Lëtzebuerger Journal, 01-02/12/2007: In Westeuropa klagen ca. 30% der Bevölkerung über Allergien. Sowohl die Zahl der Allergiepatienten als auch die Intensität der allergischen Reaktionen hat in den letzten Jahrzehnten deutlich zugenommen. Etwa 15% der Bevölkerung hat mittlerweile Heuschnupfen, 10% bereits allergisches Asthma und ca. 4% sind von Nahrungsmittelallergien betroffen.
  • Le Jeudi, 29/11/2007: Bientôt, on pourra se protéger contre les allergies alimentaires à l´aide de son téléphone portable. · Radio 100,7, News 28/11/2007.
  • L'Essentiel, 28/11/2007: Le «Personal Allergy Assistant» (PAA) est un journal électronique qui permet aux patients allergiques de tenir leur journal alimentaire. Et ce, sans trop de complications et sans perdre trop de temps.
  • La Voix du Luxembourg, 28/11/2007: Le centre de ressources des technologies pour la santé (CR Santec) du CRP Henri Tudor a développé en collaboration avec le Centre hospitalier de Luxembourg et l´université de Cologne un appareil devant faciliter le quotidien des personnes atteintes d'allergies.

Project Website:

Figure 1: The Personal Allergy Assistant (PAA)

Figure 2: Architecture of the Menssana working activities