Advances in environmental and occupational respiratory disease in 2007
Received 20 March 2008; accepted 21 March 2008.
This review of key articles appearing in the Journal in 2008 represents significant advances in the understanding of the interrelationships between the environment and allergic respiratory diseases. New allergens have been identified and characterized. Improvements in diagnostic techniques and methods to assess environmental allergen exposure have been developed. The novel therapeutics and refinements of allergen avoidance approaches will improve patient care. A fuller appreciation of the complexities of environmental factors in allergic diseases can lead to better preventative measures. Lastly, the increasingly important role of pollutants on inflammatory processes is evolving. The articles discussed will add to our increasing knowledge base and advance the ability to more effectively treat patients with allergic respiratory diseases and expand research opportunities.
Reprint requests: Robert K. Bush, MD, Allergy and Clinical Immunology, K4/910 CSC, Box 9988, 600 Highland Avenue, Madison, WI 53792.
Disclosure of potential conflict of interest: R. K. Bush has received research support from the National Institutes of Health and Greer Laboratories. D. Peden has consulting arrangements with Icagen, Genentech, and Greer Laboratories; has been on the advisory board for GlaxoSmithKline; has received research support from the National Institutes of Health, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences; and has held a position on the American Board of Allergy and Immunology and the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
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