Construction Begins on Aerodigestive Disorders Center

Rebecca Ruiz-McGill
Sept. 10, 2007


Construction has begun on The University of Arizona Steele Children’s Research Center’s PANDA Children’s Aerodigestive Disorders Center. Scheduled to open in November 2007, the center will be housed within the University Physicians Healthcare Clinics at Wilmot, 535 N. Wilmot Road.

The PANDAs (People Acting Now Discover Answers) are the Phoenix Women’s Board of the Steele Children’s Research Center and have been raising funds for the Steele Center for many years.

The PANDA Children’s Aerodigestive Disorders Center will be the only one of its kind in Arizona and the Southwest and will serve children suffering from aerodigestive disorders -- complex problems involving the airway, lungs and digestive tracts caused by food allergies and airborne allergens. A few examples of these disorders include eosinophilic esophagitis (EE), eosinophilic gastroenteritis and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Children with aerodigestive diseases suffer from nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, choking, cramping and diarrhea. Many children with these disorders fail to grow normally.

For reasons not completely understood, Arizona has far more cases of EE/EG and other aerodigestive disorders than the national average, yet there is no place in the Southwest where children can receive dedicated care for these painful disorders. In response, the PANDA Center will serve Arizona and the Southwest, employing a team approach to treat children with aerodigestive disorders.

The aerodigestive team includes Fayez K. Ghishan, MD, director of the Steele Center and a pediatric gastroenterologist; Michael Daines, MD, pediatric allergist/immunologist; Cori Daines, MD, pediatric pulmonologist; and Lindsay Brown, MS, RD, nutritionist.

“Aerodigestive disorders span the sub-specialties of gastroenterology/nutrition, pulmonary and allergy/immunology, so a team approach is the most effective way to treat these children,” Dr. Ghishan explains.

“This center has been made possible because of the generosity of the PANDAs, and we are grateful for their fundraising efforts that have made the PANDA Center a reality,” he adds.

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