Leslie Hendeles, Pharm.D.

Professor of Pharmacy Practice

College of Pharmacy

2003 Awardee

Two decades after Leslie Hendeles established the Asthma Research Laboratory in the UF College of Pharmacy, it has grown into a well-known center for asthma research, where Hendeles and his colleagues seek ways to make asthma therapy safer and more effective.

Hendeles’ current research focuses on identifying the most effective devices and doses for administering inhaled corticosteroid, the most effective treatment for asthma, to young children. Because it is often difficult to determine if small children are inhaling the proper dosage of medicine, Hendeles and his team want to ensure children get the intended benefits without side effects.

“We want to make sure a 3-year-old and a 13-year-old get the same benefits from the medicine, without the risks,” Hendeles says.

Hendeles also has participated in research which showed that a preservative in albuterol nebulizer solution, a commonly used quick-relief medication for asthma attacks, constricted the airways and could decrease the drug’s effectiveness.

“As a result of the study, doctors were advised not to prescribe the kind of albuterol with preservatives, and pharmacists were asked not to dispense it,” Hendeles says.

Julie Johnson, chair of the Department of Pharmacy Practice, says “Dr. Hendeles is, without question, considered the top clinical pharmacy asthma specialist in the nation. I knew of Dr. Hendeles and his important contributions to the asthma literature long before I joined the University of Florida faculty.”

Hendeles has accrued more than $1.1 million in extramural research support in the last five years and in 2002 he was awarded the American Pharmaceutical Association’s Research Achievement Award.