Fungal Allergen Propensity Study Confirmed Through Multiple Allergosorbent Chemiluminescent Assay / 대한의진균학회지

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND@#Exposure and sensitization to fungal allergens can evoke the development and worsen allergic diseases. Many patients with allergies show multiple positive reactions to different allergens.@*OBJECTIVE@#The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship between fungal allergens that are mostly found in South Korea and other positive reactions to the allergens of the multiple allergosorbent simultaneous test chemiluminescent assay (MAST-CLA).@*METHODS@#We enrolled 1,040 (588 men, 452 women) patients who showed positive reactions to three fungi, namely, Alternaria alternata, Aspergillus fumigatus, and Cladosporium herbarum, using MAST-CLA at Daegu Catholic University Medical Center from January 2010 to July 2017. The epidemiology and relationship between positive reactions to multiple fungal allergens and positive reactions to the allergens of the MAST-CLA were investigated.@*RESULTS@#A. alternata was the most common fungal species, followed by C. herbarum and A. fumigatus (78.8% vs. 52.1% vs. 20.1%). Patients who showed positive reactions to all fungal allergens had 4.97 other antigens on average. Statistically significant results were obtained when comparing positive reactions to all fungal allergens to other allergens (Spearman correlation coefficient = 0.129, p < 0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#Patients should be educated on allergic diseases caused by other antigens if they are sensitized to fungal antigens.