Pathogenesis of Severe Aspirin-Sensitive Asthma with Nasal Polyposis

Aspirin Exacerbated Respiratory Disease (AERD) is a severe form of asthma associated with chronic sinus disease with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) and the inability to tolerate medications such as aspirin. Patients with AERD, on average, are more likely to require oral steroids than typical asthmatics and have more severe sinus disease, necessitating repeated sinus surgeries when compared to patients with CRSwNP alone. While AERD is associated with a large socioeconomic burden and negative quality of life, it is unclear what causes this disease and why it is so severe. This proposal aims to first establish a large group of patients with AERD and then to study the role certain immune cells, in particular eosinophils, may play in nasal polyp growth and the inflammation seen in AERD