The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology
Volume 121, Issue 3 , Pages 678-684.e2 , March 2008

Exposure to multiple indoor allergens in US homes and its relationship to asthma

  • Päivi M. Salo, PhD

      Affiliations

    • National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institutes of Health, Research Triangle Park, NC
    • ,
  • Samuel J. Arbes Jr., DDS, MPH, PhD

      Affiliations

    • Rho, Inc, Chapel Hill, NC
    • ,
  • Patrick W. Crockett, PhD

      Affiliations

    • Constella Group, LLC, Durham, NC
    • ,
  • Peter S. Thorne, PhD

      Affiliations

    • College of Public Health, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
    • ,
  • Richard D. Cohn, PhD

      Affiliations

    • Constella Group, LLC, Durham, NC
    • ,
  • Darryl C. Zeldin, MD

      Affiliations

    • National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institutes of Health, Research Triangle Park, NC
    • Corresponding Author InformationReprint requests: Darryl C. Zeldin, MD, NIEHS/NIH, 111 Alexander Dr, Mail Drop D2-01, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709.

Received 20 July 2007 ,Revised 17 December 2007 ,Accepted 21 December 2007.

References 

  1. Gergen PJ. Understanding the economic burden of asthma. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2001;107(suppl):S445–S448
  2. Asthma: National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) data. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/asthma/nhis/default.htm. Accessed April 9, 2007.
  3. Leech JA, Nelson WC, Burnett RT, Aaron S, Raizenne ME. It's about time: a comparison of Canadian and American time-activity patterns. J Expo Anal Environ Epidemiol. 2002;12:427–432
  4. Committee on the Assessment of Asthma and Indoor Air, Division of Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, Institute of Medicine. Clearing the air: asthma and indoor exposures. Washington (DC): National Academy Press; 2000;
  5. Platts-Mills TA, Vervloet D, Thomas WR, Aalberse RC, Chapman MD. Indoor allergens and asthma: report of the Third International Workshop. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 1997;100(suppl):S2–S24
  6. Langley SJ, Goldthorpe S, Craven M, Morris J, Woodcock A, Custovic A. Exposure and sensitization to indoor allergens: association with lung function, bronchial reactivity, and exhaled nitric oxide measures in asthma. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2003;112:362–368
  7. Crain EF, Walter M, O'Connor GT, Mitchell H, Gruchalla RS, Kattan M, et al. Home and allergic characteristics of children with asthma in seven U.S. urban communities and design of an environmental intervention: the Inner-City Asthma Study. Environ Health Perspect. 2002;110:939–945
  8. Gruchalla RS, Pongracic J, Plaut M, Evans R, Visness CM, Walter M, et al. Inner City Asthma Study: relationships among sensitivity, allergen exposure, and asthma morbidity. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2005;115:478–485
  9. Kitch BT, Chew G, Burge HA, Muilenberg ML, Weiss ST, Platts-Mills TA, et al. Socioeconomic predictors of high allergen levels in homes in the greater Boston area. Environ Health Perspect. 2000;108:301–307
  10. Leaderer BP, Belanger K, Triche E, Holford T, Gold DR, Kim Y, et al. Dust mite, cockroach, cat, and dog allergen concentrations in homes of asthmatic children in the northeastern United States: impact of socioeconomic factors and population density. Environ Health Perspect. 2002;110:419–425
  11. Morgan WJ, Crain EF, Gruchalla RS, O'Connor GT, Kattan M, Evans R, et al. Results of a home-based environmental intervention among urban children with asthma. N Engl J Med. 2004;351:1068–1080
  12. Peters JL, Levy JI, Rogers CA, Burge HA, Spengler JD. Determinants of allergen concentrations in apartments of asthmatic children living in public housing. J Urban Health. 2007;84:185–197
  13. Thorne PS, Kulhankova K, Yin M, Cohn R, Arbes SJ, Zeldin DC. Endotoxin exposure is a risk factor for asthma: the national survey of endotoxin in United States housing. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2005;172:1371–1377
  14. Vojta PJ, Friedman W, Marker DA, Clickner R, Rogers JW, Viet SM, et al. First National Survey of Lead and Allergens in Housing: survey design and methods for the allergen and endotoxin components. Environ Health Perspect. 2002;110:527–532
  15. Arbes SJ, Cohn RD, Yin M, Muilenberg ML, Burge HA, Friedman W, et al. House dust mite allergen in US beds: results from the First National Survey of Lead and Allergens in Housing. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2003;111:408–414
  16. Arbes SJ, Cohn RD, Yin M, Muilenberg ML, Friedman W, Zeldin DC. Dog allergen (Can f 1) and cat allergen (Fel d 1) in US homes: results from the National Survey of Lead and Allergens in Housing. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2004;114:111–117
  17. Cohn RD, Arbes SJ, Jaramillo R, Reid LH, Zeldin DC. National prevalence and exposure risk for cockroach allergen in U.S. households. Environ Health Perspect. 2006;114:522–526
  18. Cohn RD, Arbes SJ, Yin M, Jaramillo R, Zeldin DC. National prevalence and exposure risk for mouse allergen in US households. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2004;113:1167–1171
  19. Salo PM, Yin M, Arbes SJ, Cohn RD, Sever M, Muilenberg M, et al. Dustborne Alternaria alternata antigens in US homes: results from the National Survey of Lead and Allergens in Housing. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2005;116:623–629
  20. Barnes C, Portnoy J, Sever M, Arbes S, Vaughn B, Zeldin DC. Comparison of enzyme immunoassay-based assays for environmental Alternaria alternata. Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol. 2006;97:350–356
  21. Custovic A, Fletcher A, Pickering CA, Francis HC, Green R, Smith A, et al. Domestic allergens in public places III: house dust mite, cat, dog and cockroach allergens in British hospitals. Clin Exp Allergy. 1998;28:53–59
  22. Huss K, Adkinson NF, Eggleston PA, Dawson C, Van Natta ML, Hamilton RG. House dust mite and cockroach exposure are strong risk factors for positive allergy skin test responses in the Childhood Asthma Management Program. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2001;107:48–54
  23. Ingram JM, Sporik R, Rose G, Honsinger R, Chapman MD, Platts-Mills TA. Quantitative assessment of exposure to dog (Can f 1) and cat (Fel d 1) allergens: relation to sensitization and asthma among children living in Los Alamos, New Mexico. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 1995;96:449–456
  24. Rosenstreich DL, Eggleston P, Kattan M, Baker D, Slavin RG, Gergen P, et al. The role of cockroach allergy and exposure to cockroach allergen in causing morbidity among inner-city children with asthma. N Engl J Med. 1997;336:1356–1363
  25. Sporik R, Holgate ST, Platts-Mills TA, Cogswell JJ. Exposure to house-dust mite allergen (Der p I) and the development of asthma in childhood. A prospective study. N Engl J Med. 1990;323:502–507
  26. Phipatanakul W, Eggleston PA, Wright EC, Wood RA. Mouse allergen. II. The relationship of mouse allergen exposure to mouse sensitization and asthma morbidity in inner-city children with asthma. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2000;106:1075–1080
  27. Salo PM, Arbes SJ, Sever M, Jaramillo R, Cohn RD, London SJ, et al. Exposure to Alternaria alternata in US homes is associated with asthma symptoms. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2006;118:892–898
  28. Breysse PN, Buckley TJ, Williams D, Beck CM, Jo SJ, Merriman B, et al. Indoor exposures to air pollutants and allergens in the homes of asthmatic children in inner-city Baltimore. Environ Res. 2005;98:167–176
  29. Perry TT, Wood RA, Matsui EC, Curtin-Brosnan J, Rand C, Eggleston PA. Room-specific characteristics of suburban homes as predictors of indoor allergen concentrations. Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol. 2006;97:628–635
  30. Chew GL, Higgins KM, Gold DR, Muilenberg ML, Burge HA. Monthly measurements of indoor allergens and the influence of housing type in a northeastern US city. Allergy. 1999;54:1058–1066
  31. Tobacco use among adults—United States, 2005. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5542a1.htm. Accessed June 5, 2007.
  32. Elliott L, Arbes SJ, Harvey ES, Lee RC, Salo PM, Cohn RD, et al. Dust weight and asthma prevalence in the National Survey of Lead and Allergens in Housing (NSLAH). Environ Health Perspect. 2007;115:215–220
  33. Cho SH, Reponen T, Bernstein DI, Olds R, Levin L, Liu X, et al. The effect of home characteristics on dust antigen concentrations and loads in homes. Sci Total Environ. 2006;371:31–43
  34. Phipatanakul W, Eggleston PA, Wright EC, Wood RA, Mouse allergen I. The prevalence of mouse allergen in inner-city homes. The National Cooperative Inner-City Asthma Study. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2000;106:1070–1074
  35. Committee on Damp Indoor Spaces and Health. Damp indoor spaces and health. Washington (DC): National Academies Press; 2004;
  36. Gold DR, Wright R. Population disparities in asthma. Annu Rev Public Health. 2005;26:89–113
  37. Illi S, von Mutius E, Lau S, Niggemann B, Gruber C, Wahn U. Perennial allergen sensitisation early in life and chronic asthma in children: a birth cohort study. Lancet. 2006;368:763–770
  38. Nelson HS. The importance of allergens in the development of asthma and the persistence of symptoms. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2000;105(suppl):S628–S632
  39. Rogers L, Cassino C, Berger KI, Goldring RM, Norman RG, Klugh T, et al. Asthma in the elderly: cockroach sensitization and severity of airway obstruction in elderly nonsmokers. Chest. 2002;122:1580–1586
  40. Self-reported asthma prevalence among adults—United States, 2000. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5032a3.htm. Accessed May 4, 2007.

 Supported in part by the Intramural Research Program of the National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, and by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development.

 Disclosure of potential conflict of interest: S. J. Arbes is employed by Rho, Inc. P. W. Crockett and R. D. Cohn are employed by Constella Group, LLC. The rest of the authors have declared that they have no conflict of interest.

PII: S0091-6749(07)03614-7

doi: 10.1016/j.jaci.2007.12.1164

The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology
Volume 121, Issue 3 , Pages 678-684.e2 , March 2008

Article Tools

* Image Usage & Resolution