engleski

Indoor allergen levels in homes in Croatia

Background: Sensitisation to house dust mite, cat and dog allergen is an important risk factor for asthma. Domestic allergen exposure may play a role in the development of sensitisation, and may contribute to asthma severity amongst sensitised asthmatics. Little is known about indoor allergen levels in homes in Croatia. We aimed to investigate the level of exposure to major dust mite, cat and dog allergens in Croatian homes. Methods: We visited 769 homes of children aged 6- 18 years who were recruited to a case-control study of asthma (390 asthmatic cases, 379 non- asthmatic controls). We ascertained housing conditions and pet ownership by validated questionnaire and atopic status using skin prick testing. Dust samples were collected from a 1 m2 area of the mattress. Der p 1, Fel d 1 and Can f 1 were measured using monoclonal antibody-based ELISAs. High exposure to dust mite, cat or dog allergen was considered when: Der p 1 > 2 microg/g, Fel d 1 > 8 microg/g and Can f 1 > 10 microg/g. Results: Der p 1 was below the detection limit of the assay (0.05 microg/g) in only 61 (7.9%) homes, whilst high exposure to dust mite was found in 567 (73.7%) homes. The mean level of Der p 1 in mattress dust was high (GM 4.33 microg/g). In a marked contrast, Fel d 1 and Can f 1 were below the detection limit in 514 (66.8%) and 375 (48.8%) homes respectively. High exposure to cat or dog allergen was measured in only 21 (2.7%) and 84 (10.9%) homes. 89 (11.6%) participants kept a cat in their home and 50 (6.5%) were dog owners. Dog allergen was significantly higher in homes of dog owners compared to those who did not own a dog (GM 0.13 microg/g vs. 2.25 microg/g, mean difference 16.6 fold, 95% CI of the difference 10.4-26.6 fold, p=0.001). Similarly, cat allergen was higher amongst cat owners (GM 0.29 microg/g vs. 4.59 microg/g, mean difference 15.8 fold, 95% CI of the difference 9.9-25.2 fold, p<0.001). Sensitisation pattern amongst children reflected the community level of exposure, with sensitisation to dust mite being dominant (45.1% ; 78.5% amongst cases, 10.8% amongst controls) and low frequency of sensitisation to cat (6.5%, 11.8% cases, 1.1% controls) and dog (6.8%, 12.1%cases, 1.3% controls). Conclusions: Dust mite allergen levels are high in Croatian homes ; in contrast, exposure to cat and dog allergen is low. We observed similar pattern of allergen sensitisation amongst school children (high to dust mite, low to cat and dog). Funding: MM supported by a short-term EAACI Fellowship.

indoor allergen ; sensitisation ; risk factor ; children ; asthma

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