Epidemiology of inhalant allergy in the group of patients of Department of Pediatric Allergy and Pulmonology, Warsaw Medical University
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Abstract
Introduction: The clinical manifestation of atopy is supposed to be related to the type of allergen exposure. We may expect that sensitization to different allergens influences a clinical expression of atopy. A distribution of aeroallergies differs depending on climate and geographic latitude. Therefore we may presume that a prevalence of allergic diseases is related to geographic conditions.
Objective: An objective of the study was to determine:
1) a distribution of aeroallergies among atopic patients of the Clinic, living on the territory of Mazovia, diagnosed with bronchial asthma (BA), allergic rhinitis (AR) or both and
2) to compare the prevalence of different allergens in groups regarding diagnosis and gender.
Methods: Among patients of the Clinic we selected 435 subjects with: 1) clinical symptoms of atopy, 2) positive skin prick tests and 3) elevated total serum IgE-level. A hypersensitivity to standard indoor and outdoor aeroallergens in our climate was examined. Additionally data of boys and girls were analyzed separately.
Results: There were 278 boys (63,9%) and 157 girls (36,1%) in the examined group. Mean age was 14. 160 children were diagnosed with BA, 165 with AR and 110 with both. The prevalence of boys was noticed in all groups. The highest rate of sensitization was observed to: house dust mites (HDM) – 71% and grass pollen – 70,3%, which preceded visibly the frequency of allergies to trees pollen – 58,62%, cat dander – 46,4%, mugwort pollen – 41,6%, dog dander – 41% and moulds – 40,23%. For asthmatic subjects the most frequent allergen was HDM, whereas for individuals with AR – grass pollen. The higher prevalence of allergy to animal dander was observed in asthmatic patients than in those with AR. Inversed relation was detected for mugwort pollen. Boys were not only predominant but they also presented symptoms of both asthma and allergic rhinitis more often.
Conclusions: A pattern of allergies differed according to diagnosis. Children allergic to HDM presented more likely symptoms of BA, whereas individuals hypersensitive to grass pollens developed more often clinical manifestation of AR. Subjects with hypersensitivity to mugwort were more prone to develop rhinitis than asthma. A distribution of aeroallergens regarding gender did not differ significantly. However a pattern of clinical manifestation was different according to gender. Abbreviations: AR – allergic rhinitis, BA – bronchial asthma, HDM – house dust mites
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