Volume 124, Issue 2 , Pages 185-192.e9, August 2009
Indoor allergens in school and day care environments
Most studies that have examined exposure to indoor allergens have focused on home environments. However, allergen exposures can be encountered in environments other than the home. For example, many children spend a large part of their time in schools and day care facilities. Over the past 2 decades, a large number of studies have been conducted in school and day care environments. However, the role of indoor exposures in allergy and asthma development or morbidity in these settings is not well characterized. The purpose of this review is to evaluate the importance of indoor allergen exposures in school and day care settings. We summarize the key findings from recent scientific literature, describe exposure characteristics, discuss the role of these exposures in relation to asthma and allergy symptoms, and provide information on the effectiveness of published interventions.
Key words: Allergen, indoor, exposure, asthma, allergy, school, day care
Abbreviation used: MUP, Mouse urinary protein (mouse allergen)
(Supported by an educational grant from Merck & Co., Inc.)
Series editors: Joshua A. Boyce, MD, Fred Finkelman, MD, William T. Shearer, MD, PhD, and Donata Vercelli, MD
Supported by the Intramural Research Program of the National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (Z01 ES025041).
Terms in boldface and italics are defined in the glossary on page 186.
PII: S0091-6749(09)00803-3
doi:10.1016/j.jaci.2009.05.012
© 2009 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Volume 124, Issue 2 , Pages 185-192.e9, August 2009