ABSTRACT
In the first phase of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood, a large difference in occurrence of asthma symptoms was seen between children in Albania and the UK. We did skin-prick tests with various allergens and measured peak expiratory flow rate in about 1000 children from each country. A large difference in the proportion of exercise-induced bronchial reactivity was evident between children from Albania and the UK (0.8% vs 5.4%, respectively). However, the frequency of allergic sensitisation was closely similar (15.0% vs 17.8%, respectively). These results suggest that large geographical variations in asthma prevalence can arise without differences in frequency of atopy.
Subject(s)
Asthma/epidemiology , Hypersensitivity/epidemiology , Skin Tests , Albania/epidemiology , Child , Humans , Hypersensitivity/diagnosis , Peak Expiratory Flow Rate , United Kingdom/epidemiologyABSTRACT
Plants of Cupressaceae family are quite widespread in Albania. Aerobiological data show that 43% of the total airborne pollens per year come from this family. The highest concentrations of Cupressaceae pollen were found from February to May, while low quantities (till 32 p/m3) were present form November to January. From 110 patients with respiratory allergies and positive-SPT, only three subjects (2.7%) were SPT-positive to Cupressaceae. All the three were polysensitized.
