ABSTRACT
Objective: To determine levels of indoor allergens in five public hospitals in Thailand. Methods: A total of 90 dust samples were collected from five public hospitals in Bangkok, Thailand, during March 2002 to October 2003. These hospitals provide both adult and pediatric care to over 500 patients daily. Each dust sample was collected at 12.00-13.00 pm during the years 2002-2003. The total amount of dust was weighed and one hundred milligram of fine dust from each sample was extracted. A commercialized two-site monoclonal antibody-based immunoassay (Indoor Biotechnologies, Ltd., Manchester, UK) was used to quantify the levels of Der p1, Der f1, Can f1 and Fel d1. Results: Fifty-one out of 90 dust samples were positive for indoor allergens. Four common groups of allergens were analyzed and detected; Der p 1 8/90 (8.89%), Der f 1 1/90 (1.11%), Fel d 1 39/90 (43.33%) and Can f 1 3/90 (3.33%)(of total samples). The arithmetic mean and standard deviation were 0.06 ug/g±0.26, 0.08 x 10-2 ug/g ± 0.001, 0.39 ug/g± 0.71 and 0.06 ug/g±0.30 for Der p 1, Der f 1, Fel d 1 and Can f 1, respectively (p =0.004). Fel d 1, the highest density allergen extracted from dust samples from hospital no. 5 and it showed a statistical difference compared with hospitals no.1,2,3,4 was observed; p < 0.05.* Conclusion: Our findings indicated that cat allergen can be found in a hospital setting where no cat is present.
ABSTRACT
The nonstinging house ant, Monomorium pharaonis (pharaoh ant), was recently identified as a cause of respiratory allergy. This study was performed to evaluate the extent of sensitization to pharaoh ant, and its clinical significance in asthmatic patients. We carried out skin prick tests in 318 patients with asthma. Specific IgE (sIgE) to pharaoh ant was measured by ELISA, and cross-reactivity was evaluated by ELISA inhibition tests. Bronchial provocation testing was performed using pharaoh ant extracts. Fifty-eight (18.2%) of 318 patients showed positive skin responses to pharaoh ant, and 25 (7.9%) had an isolated response to pharaoh ant. Positive skin responses to pharaoh ant were significantly higher among patients with non-atopic asthma than among those with atopic asthma (26.0% vs. 14.9%, p<0.05). There was significant correlation between sIgE level and skin responses to pharaoh ant (rho=0.552, p<0.001). The ELISA inhibition tests indicated that pharaoh ant allergens had various pattern of cross-reactivity to house dust mites and cockroaches. Bronchial provocation tests to pharaoh ant were conducted for 9 patients, and eight showed typical asthmatic reactions. In conclusion, pharaoh ant is an important source of aeroallergens, and it should be included in the skin test battery for screening the causative allergens in patients with asthma.
Subject(s)
Adolescent , Adult , Animals , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Administration, Inhalation , Allergens/immunology , Ants/immunology , Asthma/blood , Bronchial Hyperreactivity/immunology , Bronchial Provocation Tests , Immunoglobulin E/blood , Skin TestsABSTRACT
The impact of indoor allergens is greater than that of outdoor or occupational environments. Cockroaches have been demonstrated to be an etiologic factor in allergic diseases, especially in patients with lower socioeconomic classes in large urban areas. Infestations of cockroaches are largely dependent on housing conditions, and hypersensitivity is dependent on exposure. We herein report a 38-year-old man with factitious urticaria revealed strong positive reactions to crude extracts of American cockroach and German cockroach at a skin pinprick test and Western blot analysis.