Maryland-based asthma device company, iSonea, makers of the Wheezometer device, recently offered up its first smartphone app, AsthmaSense for iPhone, iPad and Android users. The first iteration of AsthmaSense includes journaling features, medication and testing alert reminders, emergency services contact information, and the ability to share data with caregivers and providers.

Future versions of the AsthmaSense app will serve a companion app for the company’s Wheezometer device. iSonea also stated that it plans to offer other sensors that might integrate with the app in the future, including sensors that can detect changes in the environment like air quality and weather. Environmental changes can trigger asthma symptoms.

The app is currently available for $3.99.

Earlier this year MobiHealthNews reported on iSonea launching its recruiting efforts for a pediatric asthma trial. iSonea’s core offering today is a medical device called the WheezoMeter, a point of care, handheld device that “analyzes 30 seconds of breath sounds using advanced signal processing algorithms to detect, quantify and objectively document the presence of wheeze and its extent,” according to iSonea’s website. The company is currently seeking an over-the-counter (OTC) status for the WheezoMeter from the FDA. In February iSonea announced plans to leverage Qualcomm’s 2net platform for home health devices.

At the end of last year, iSonea’s CEO Michael Thomas explained his company’s future plans to a radio host in Australia. Thomas said that once iSonea receives an OTC status from the FDA, it will be able to launch its smartphone initiative. While iSonea is currently a medical device company that makes its own hardware, it believes that at its core it is a smart algorithm and software company. It intends to become hardware agnostic. iSonea believes smartphones will allow them to do that.

Here’s a rundown of the app’s features, according to iSonea:

• Journal: Easily record peak flow, wheeze, medication use (scheduled, unscheduled and missed medication dosages) and symptoms.
• Alerts: Set the tone and time for medication and testing reminders. Receive alerts when your asthma is "not well controlled" or "poorly controlled" according to medical community guidelines.
• Rescue: Access emergency contact information quickly and easily.
• Manage your data: Review up to two months of medication use. Share your AsthmaSense data with a physician, family member or caregiver.

For more on AsthmaSense read the press release below:

PRESS RELEASE: SEVERNA PARK, Md., June 4, 2012 -- Medical technology company, iSonea Ltd. (ASX: ISN; OTCQX: ISOAY) today announced the launch of a new asthma management smartphone app, AsthmaSense™, available for iPhone, iPad and Android users. AsthmaSense is the most comprehensive, yet easy-to-use smartphone app designed specifically to help improve the way people live with and manage asthma.

AsthmaSense is the first app to bring together everything you need to manage asthma more effectively and conveniently. Once you program your asthma action plan, AsthmaSense makes sure you are tracking to your plan with active reminders.  The AsthmaSense app allows you to record and track your symptoms, lung function tests, asthma events and medications. It also provides interactive medication and testing reminders. Features include:

• Journal: Easily record peak flow, wheeze, medication use (scheduled, unscheduled and missed medication dosages) and symptoms.
• Alerts: Set the tone and time for medication and testing reminders. Receive alerts when your asthma is "not well controlled" or "poorly controlled" according to medical community guidelines.
• Rescue: Access emergency contact information quickly and easily.
• Manage your data: Review up to two months of medication use. Share your AsthmaSense data with a physician, family member or caregiver.

In the United States alone, 25 million people have asthma, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). The CDC also estimates the cost burden in the U.S. alone exceeds $56 billion annually, as poorly controlled asthma is associated with increased emergency room visits, hospitalizations and medical costs. The World Health Organization estimates that there are more than 250,000 deaths globally from poorly controlled asthma every year.  The medical community's guidelines, including those from the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), state that regular monitoring of breathing symptoms is necessary to improve medication compliance and successful long-term management of asthma.  It is also recommended that all people with asthma have an asthma action plan developed with their doctor to help control their asthma.

Managing asthma is crucial to controlling the disease and improving health; however regular, diligent monitoring of symptoms, triggers and medications can be challenging for patients, caregivers and parents alike," said Lynn M. Taussig, M.D., Chairman of iSonea's Medical Advisory Board, Special Advisor to the Provost for the Life Sciences at the University of Denver and the retired president and CEO of National Jewish Medical and Research Center. "AsthmaSense smartphone app is an easy and convenient way to monitor and track asthma and keep your doctor informed of your condition and progress. This ultimately leads to better health, avoids emergency visits and provides peace of mind for patients and their families."

"iSonea is dedicated to developing innovative, easy-to-use devices and mobile apps that help improve asthma monitoring and management," said Michael Thomas, CEO of iSonea Ltd. "We built the AsthmaSense app with the user in mind. We understand how critical it is to track your asthma, and so we built an app with key features that help you better manage your asthma anywhere, anytime."

AsthmaSense is available for purchase at the Apple App Store (for iPhone and iPad users) and Google Play and Amazon App Stores (for Android users). The app has a one-time cost of $3.99.  Future versions of AsthmaSense will incorporate iSonea's WheezoMeter® which uses the company's Acoustic Respiratory Monitoring™ (ARM) to measure wheezing, one of the principal symptoms of asthma. In future versions, the company plans to support other operating platforms and incorporate features such as a sensor that detects changes in environmental conditions such as air quality and weather.

Two AsthmaSense videos are available for viewing. If you'd like to view a brief overview of the AsthmaSense app please follow this link, or if you'd like to view a tutorial of AsthmaSense and its capabilities please follow this link.

About iSonea Limited

iSonea Limited (ASX:ISN; OTCQX:ISOAY) is an emerging medical technology company developing innovative, non-invasive devices and mobile health apps to improve the management of chronic, costly respiratory disorders such as asthma and COPD. By leveraging iSonea's proprietary Acoustic Respiratory Monitoring™ (ARM) technology with its AsthmaSense™ mobile applications, iSonea is turning smartphones into medical devices—enabling anyone, anywhere, at any time to monitor breathing distress symptoms, in order to take action. iSonea's ARM devices have been cleared for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Australian TGA and the European Union CE. For more information, please visit www.soundasthma.com.