Mobile Expert and Networking System for Systematical Analysis of Nutrition-Based Allergies - MENSSANA (phase 3)

Coordinating Institution: CRP Henri Tudor
Contracting Partner(s): Centre Hospitalier de Luxembourg , University of Luxembourg , University of Cologne
Other Partner(s): Ärzteverband Deutscher Allergologen , Association Luxembourgeoise des Intolérants au Gluten , Cactus S.A. , Deutscher Allergie- und Asthmabund e.V. (D) , Initiative Neurodermitiskrank Kanner an Erwuessener , Lycée Technique d'Ettelbrück , Lycée Technique Michel Lucius , Société Luxembourgeoise Dermato-Vénéréologie , University of Trier (Dept. of Philology) , Vox Mobile
From: 01/01/2008
To: 30/06/2010
Budget: 450,000.00€
Contact(s): Rösch Norbert

Summary

In the field of food based allergies, independent and trust worthy information about this disease is of high importance to patients. The FNR MENSSANA project (Phase 1 and 2) has already developed different prototypes of ICT-services relating to these needs, one of which is the WikiFood website. WikiFood is a volunteer network of food consumers and food producers, who strive to develop an independent food products database. Given that the Internet knows no borders, it is obvious that information developed by such a community will have a pan-European impact. The legal implications of such a service are especially important to the development of such a service and its further valorisation. Under current legislation in many states it is unclear what happens in case of a damage caused by wrongful information supplied on the internet.

The legal research focussed on a set of questions identified within the first year of MENSSANA-3. Some guidelines have been developed to reduce the risk of liability for illegal user-generated content. As the wording of the European framework on E-Commerce turned out to be very vague, national provisions and case law have been the subject of research in order to define the requirements for the liability exemption under the E-Commerce Directive. Beside analyzing matters of jurisdiction, the acquisition of knowledge of any illegal content and potential monitoring duties, an emphasis was put on the question of liability for wrongful information as this poses a severe risk for the provider of wikifood.eu and anyone that contributes content to the website.

A questionnaire focussing on questions of national law has been developed and will be distributed to legal scholars from Europe and the United States as part of the scheduled web services workshop on liabilities, which will be held at the University of Luxemburg in February 2010. Different valorisation activities have been performed in light of the existing technical, legal, medical and market environment. In cooperation with the Luxembourg Business Academy, a department of the University of Luxembourg, a partnership was established whereby a master thesis in entrepreneurship and innovation was completed.

This external viewpoint is relevant for the evaluation of different commercial activities based on the projects outputs. Given the inputs from both the legal and valorisation research, the WikiFood web site has been re-developed to better support community engineering activities. Major topics of this approach are an improved allergy news-gathering service, better structuring of the available ingredient data, and a simplified user interface.

Refereed Scientific Publications:

  • Cole, Mark D.: Die traditionellen Medien in der Krise: Bedeutungsverlust und rechtlicher Handlungsbedarf?, AfP 2009, p. 541, 547 ff.
  • Planned for Publication as a book in 2010: results of the First Amendment Discussion Forum, held at the University of Luxembourg in May 2009 with contributions on regulation of and liability in the internet, inter alia Cole, “Of Platforms, Privacy and the Press: Legal responses to the changing media landscape” and Schmitz “4.3 on a scale from 1 to 6 – not so “cool”, not so “funny” – teacher Grading and Protection of Personality Rights on the Web: recent developments in German Law”
  • Rösch N, Feidert F, Arens A, Harpes P, Plumer P, Feidert F, Mösges R. Telemedizinisch unterstütztes Diät- und Diagnosemanagement bei Nahrungsmittel-allergie, Bulletin de la Société Médicale du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg. No.2/2009. (in Druck)
  • 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.
  • Roesch, Norbert; Arens, Andreas; Feidert, Frank; Harpes, Patrick; Moesges, Ralph: ICT supported disease management in food-based allergy, Allergy 2008 (European Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology), Volume 63 Supplement 88 , 586-587
  • 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. 10TH International Symposium on Immunological, Chemical and Clinical Problems of Food Allergy. PARMA (ITALY), 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.
Other Publications:
  • Conference ”Lost in (Cyber-)Space: What’s left of Data Protection and/or Intellectual Property Rights on the web?” by Mark D. Cole, University of Luxembourg
  • Contribution “Legal aspects of Web 2.0” to Dagstuhl Seminar “Virtual games, interactive hosted services and user-generated content in Web 2.0” by Mark D. Cole, University of Luxembourg, and contribution to Hoeren, Thomas/Vossen, Gottfried: Manifest -- The Role of Law in an Electronic World Dominated by Web 2.0, available online under http://drops.dagstuhl.de/opus/volltexte/2008/1699/
  • 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 MEDETEL 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-Neckareiz, 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 Televison Broadcast "Kaptial" about MENSSANA and WikiFood
  • Stand on the scientific section MEDICA MEDIA of MEDICA 2008 congress and fair
  • Conducting the MedicaMedia Workshop “Erfahrungen mit einem landesweiten Gesundheitsnetzwerk”, Düsseldorf, Germany
  • Presentation of Norbert Rösch about ICT supported health care and allergy management on the MEDICA 2008
  • RTL Radio Letzebuerg, 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 about MENSSANA at MOCOMED 2008, Mobiles Computing in der Medizin, Stuttgart, Germany
  • The English version of the article about WikiFood and MENSSANA and the financial support of the FNR has been added to the Wikipedia Encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikifood).
Project Website: