Scientific research has come a long way since Susan Finney stood in her undies and singlet more than half a century ago. At the time she was taking part in a new study into asthma and respiratory health. The 61-year-old Richmond resident was one of 8,583 Tasmanian school children who were recruited into the Tasmanian Longitudinal Health Study (TAHS), which has since become the world's largest and longest running study of asthma and respiratory health, back in 1968. Susan - who was going to school at Sheffield Primary School on the north west coast at the time, said her mother heard about and signed her up for the program. She had no respiratory issues personally, and said she believed she was randomly selected to participate based on her age. "I'm pretty sure they tested how long you could hold breath, that sort of thing. I can't remember any machinery involved," she said. Researchers are currently completing a 50 year follow up on the original study. Susan took part in a follow up evaluation recently - her second in the past five years. She said the recent follow ups had been very different to what she remembered as a child. "The tests were a lot more technically involved. I had to breathe in and out of a machine and they tested my lung capacity that way. "I also had to take some Ventolin then retest to see if made any difference to my breathing ability. Also they tested my hand grip ability and took some blood. "I can actually remember having to be in singlet and undies to be weighed and measured as a child, lucky I didn't have to do that this time!" While her memories of the initial testing three years ago are a bit hazy, she said she was happy to be involved in ongoing research work she sees as "very important". "I found out yesterday I have great lung capacity and grip, so even from a personal point of view, finding that out is really reassuring," she said. The study - which started when participants were aged seven, has followed up to monitor progress via questionnaires and lung function tests. It aims to investigate the impact of previous health conditions and environmental factors on the later life respiratory health of participants. Data collected so far has informed over 80 research articles and 140 conference presentations, influencing scientific knowledge, clinical practice and respiratory health policy. Keeping track of more than 8,000 children as they grow up is proving a challenge for researchers. Many participants have moved interstate or overseas, while privacy laws prevent the team from using personal records to locate them. Rising numbers of phone and email scams have also resulted in reluctance to participate from some who have been reached out to. Principal investigator Shyamali Dharmage said the team respected participants' privacy and understood the need for caution. "We always work within the bounds of research ethics and try to balance our respect for privacy with the need to trace our participants for this important health research."- Professor Dharmage said. The team is currently looking at more modern ways to reach out to past participants, including via social media platforms. If you participated in the original study and haven't yet participated in the follow up, call 1800-110-711 or click HERE.
