Environemntal allergens in patients with allergic rhinitis

To find out the common environmental allergens responsible for sensitivity in patients with allergic rhinitis. Design: Descriptive cross sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: A local allergy clinic in an urban area of Lahore during the year 2000-2001. Subjects and Eighty patients with allergic rhinitis irrespective of age and sex were studied. These cases were selected on the basis of symptoms like sneezing, itching, watery nasal discharge and eosinophilia in nasal secretions. Forty matched healthy subjects as controls were also studied. Allergy test was performed on all the subjects by skin prick test to determine sensitivity to common environmental allergens using Bencard [England] allergy kit. Common environmental allergens responsible for sensitivity in allergic rhinitis patients were house dust [82.5%], house dust mites [73.7%], mixed threshing [80%], straw dust [58.7%], hay dust [63.7%], mixed feathers [45%], cat fur [57.5%], cotton flock [56.2%], tree pollens [45%] and grass pollens [48.7%]. Sensitivity to these allergens was observed in significantly higher [P<0.01] percentage of allergic rhinitis patients as compared with control subjects. Sensitivity to house dust, house dust mites and cat fur was of severe degree in majority of allergic rhinitis patients. While sensitivity to mixed threshing, straw dust, hay dust and mixed feathers was of moderate to severe degree in majority of these patients. Skin prick tests provide an effective and definitive mean to find out sensitivity to different allergens in cases with allergic rhinitis. Based on these findings, the physician can manage these patients in better way

Clinical features of infantile diarrhea associated with single or multiple enteric pathognes

Clinical features of infantile diarrhea were studied among 603 infants from birth to 12 months of age to determine the predominant clinical feature[s] seen in infantile diarrhea associated with a specific enteric pathogen. Among the major clinical features, fever was most often seen in diarrhea due to Yersinia spp. [61.5%] followed by that in rotavirus [26.1%]. Vomiting was mostly associated with Vibrio cholerae infection [90.9%] and shigellosis [64.6%]. Dehydration was predominant in Vibrio cholerae [90.9%] and Salmonella [84.9%] infections. Bloody diarrhea was mostly due to Shigella infection [74.3%]. As regards diarrhea with multiple pathogens, vomiting and dehydration were most frequent with Campylobacter+Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli [EPEC] [88.9% and 77.8%, respectively], while fever was more common with rotavirus+Shigella+Escherichia coli and rotavirus+Giardia. Infection with invasive organisms lead to vomiting, 4-10 stools per day and dehydration significantly more often as compared to infections with non-invasive organisms. Similarly more stools of patients infected with invasive organisms showed presence of blood and more than 5 leukocytes/HPF as compared to those infected with non-invasive organisms