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We studied home environment exposures in relation to asthma, allergic rhinitis and atopic dermatitis among offspring of participants (parents) in the Respiratory Health in Northern Europe (RHINE) study (age ≤ 30 y). Totally 17,881 offspring from Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Estonia were included. Home environment exposures, including dampness and mold, type of dwelling, construction year and indoor painting were registered through a questionnaire answered by parents in the first follow up (RHINE II). The parents reported ten years later with in the frame of RHINE III offspring's birth year and offspring's asthma, allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis. They also reported dampness and mold at home from RHINE II to RHINE III. The prevalence of offspring's asthma before 10 y, asthma after 10 y, allergic rhinitis at any age and atopic dermatitis at any age were 9.7 %, 4.3 %, 15.6 % and 17.3 %, respectively. Asthma before 10 y was related to any indoor painting at RHINE II (OR = 1.14, 95%CI (1.02, 1.29)). Asthma after 10 y was associated with dampness/mold at home (OR = 1.33-1.62) and living in the newest buildings (constructed in 1986-2001) (OR = 1.30, 95%CI (1.02, 1.66)). Allergic rhinitis was associated with living in newer buildings (constructed in 1961-2001) (OR = 1.16-1.24). Atopic dermatitis was associated with visible mold (OR = 1.35, 95%CI(1.12, 1.62)), dampness/mold at home (OR = 1.18-1.38), living in apartments (OR = 1.22, 95%CI(1.10, 1.35)) and living in newer buildings (constructed in 1961-2001) (OR = 1.14-1.25). There were dose-response effects of dampness and mold on offspring's asthma after 10 y and atopic dermatitis (20 years exposure vs. 10 years exposure). Older offspring had increased risk of developing asthma after 10 y and atopic dermatitis. In conclusion, home dampness and mold, living in apartments, living in newer buildings and indoor painting were associated with offspring's asthma or allergic diseases. Stronger health effects were found among offspring with prolonged exposure of dampness/mold., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Background: Allergies are a serious public health issue, and prevalences are rising worldwide. The role of antibiotics in the development of allergies has repeatedly been discussed, as results remain inconsistent. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between pre- and post-natal antibiotic exposure and subsequent development of allergies (atopic dermatitis, food allergy, asthma, atopic sensitization and allergic rhinitis)., Methods: A total of 1080 children who participated in a European birth cohort study (PASTURE) were included in this analysis. Data on antibiotic exposure during pregnancy and/or first year of life and allergic diseases were collected by questionnaires from pregnancy up to 6 years of age and analysed by performing logistic regressions. To take into account reverse causation, we included models, where children with diagnosis or symptoms of the respective disease in the first year of life were excluded., Results: Antibiotic exposure in utero was significantly and positively associated with atopic dermatitis and food allergy. The strongest effect was on diseases with onset within the first year of life (for atopic dermatitis: aOR 1.66, 95% CI 1.11-2.48 and for food allergy: aOR 3.01, 95% CI 1.22-7.47). Antibiotics in the first year of life were positively associated with atopic dermatitis up to 4 years (aOR 2.73, 95% CI 1.66-4.49) and also suggested a dose-response relationship. A tendency was observed with asthma between 3 and 6 years (aOR 1.65, 95% CI 0.95-2.86)., Conclusions: Our findings show positive associations between exposure to antibiotics and allergies, mainly atopic dermatitis and food allergy within the first year of life, after prenatal exposure, and atopic dermatitis and asthma after post-natal exposure to antibiotics in children born in rural settings., (© 2019 EAACI and John Wiley and Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley and Sons Ltd.)

(1) Background: Tropomyosin is a major cause of shellfish allergy and anaphylaxis triggered by food. It acts as a pan-allergen, inducing cross-reactivity in insects, dust mites, crustaceans, and mollusks. Our study investigates anaphylaxis in children with asthma or atopic diseases after consuming tropomyosin-containing food. (2) Methods: We analyzed the molecular sensitization profiles of pediatric patients at the University of Campania 'Luigi Vanvitelli' from 2017 to 2021, with conditions such as allergic rhinitis, asthma, atopic dermatitis, urticaria, and food allergies. (3) Results: Out of a total of 253 patients aged 1 to 18 years (167 males, 86 females), 21 patients (8.3%) experienced anaphylaxis after shrimp ingestion. All 21 (100%) were sensitized to various tropomyosins: Pen m 1 (100%), Der p 10 (90.5%), Ani s 3 (81%), and Bla g 7 (76.2%). Clinical symptoms included allergic asthma (76.2%), atopic dermatitis (61.9%), urticaria (38.1%), and allergic rhinitis (38.1%). (4) Conclusions: Crustaceans and mollusks are major allergens in Italy and Europe, requiring mandatory declaration on food labels. Italian pediatric patients demonstrated significant anaphylaxis after consuming shrimp, often accompanied by multiple atopic disorders such as asthma, rhinitis, and atopic dermatitis. Considering the cross-reactivity of tropomyosin among various invertebrates and the emergence of 'novel foods' containing insect flours in Europe, there is ongoing debate about introducing precautionary labeling for these products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Anaphylaxis has increased over the last two decades in Europe, reaching an estimated prevalence of 0.3% and an incidence of 1.5–7.9 per 100,000 person‐years. Allergic multimorbidity is associated with asthma severity, yet its role in anaphylaxis is not fully understood. Our aim was to study association between allergic multimorbidity and anaphylaxis in adults. Methods: We used population‐based data from the Finnish Allergy Barometer Study (n = 2070, age range: 5–75). Food allergy (FA), atopic dermatitis (AD), allergic rhinitis (AR) and allergic conjunctivitis (AC), were defined from a self‐completed questionnaire. A logistic regression adjusted on potential confounders (sex, age, smoking status) was applied to estimate the anaphylaxis risk associated with allergic multimorbidity. Results: 1319 adults with at least one allergic disease (FA, AD, AR, AC) with/without asthma (AS) were included. Of these, 164 had self‐reported anaphylaxis [mean (SD, min‐max) 54 (14, 22–75) years, 17% men]. AS, FA, AR, AC, or AD were reported by 86.0%, 62.2%, 82.3%, 43.3%, and 53.7% of subjects with anaphylaxis and respectively by 67.8%, 29.5%, 86.2%, 29.4%, and 34.4% of subjects without anaphylaxis. Compared with subjects exhibiting only one allergic disease, the risk of anaphylaxis increased with the number of allergic diseases; adjusted odds ratios (OR) [CI95%] for two, three, four and five coinciding allergic diseases were 1.80 [0.79–4.12], 3.35 [1.47–7.66], 7.50 [3.25–17.32], and 13.5 [5.12–33.09], respectively. The highest risk of anaphylaxis (6.47 [4.33–9.92]) was associated with FA + AS or their various variations with AR/AC/AD embodied, when compared with AR, AC, and AS separately or their combinations. Conclusions: Anaphylaxis was positively associated with the number of allergic diseases a subject exhibited and with subgroups including FA and/or AS. The results can be applied when estimating the risk of anaphylaxis for individual patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is estimated that every third person living in Europe suffers from allergic diseases. Allergies are a growing health problem in Poland where 40% of the population have allergy symptoms, including 12% afflicted with asthma. The actual cost of allergic diseases is difficult to estimate due to the lack or incompleteness of the relevant data. The aim of this review is to present estimates of the indirect costs of allergic diseases in Poland and globally, using asthma, allergic rhinitis and atopic dermatitis as examples. The analysis also includes the impact of allergic diseases on the costs to the social welfare system and employers. The literature review of the indirect costs of allergic diseases shows that the indirect costs of a disease, which substantially exceed the direct costs, increase with the disease activity and severity. Interestingly, some studies have found that the indirect costs of lost productivity due to hours missed from work to take care of a sick child could be threefold higher than those of absence due to a worker's own illness. The indirect costs of a disease can be significantly reduced by early diagnosis and appropriate treatment. Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2019;32(3):281-90. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Background About 8-10% of the general population in Europe carry a null mutation in the filaggrin gene which is associated with early onset of atopic dermatitis as well as persistence into adulthood. No studies have investigated whether individuals with the homozygous filaggrin null genotype always develop dermatitis. Objectives The aim of this study was to describe the natural history of individuals with no filaggrin expression. Materials Three study populations were included: (i) a random sample of 3335 subjects aged 18-69 years from the general population in Copenhagen who underwent general health examination; (ii) a total of 499 patients seen in our dermatitis clinic since 2009 and who were filaggrin genotyped as a part of the routine diagnostic work up; and (iii) a prospective, longitudinal, birth cohort study of 411 children born to mothers with a history of asthma. Filaggrin genotyping was performed for the 2282del4 and R501X mutations. Results Filaggrin homozygous/compound heterozygous individuals accounted for 0.3% of adults, 3% of dermatitis patients and 0.7% of children. Respectively, one of nine adults and one of three children never experienced dermatitis until now. All hospital patients had atopic dermatitis with onset during (early) childhood. Year-long complete remission was observed in half of patients. Conclusions The natural history of individuals with the filaggrin null genotype is fairly good in the sense that they may not develop dermatitis at all, and if they do, they may experience complete remission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The inducible co-stimulatory molecule, ICOS, is an important regulator of T cell differentiation and effector function. Previously, it was reported that two variants in the ICOS promotor region, g.1-1413G>A and g.1-693G>A, were associated with sensitization to airborne allergens, elevated serum IgE levels and Th2 cytokine production in a Hutterite population. The aim of this study was to evaluate these two and four other selected ICOS variants for association with atopic phenotypes in two large European prospective pediatric cohorts. We investigated subjects from the German Multicenter Allergy Study (MAS), which followed over 800 children with atopic family history from birth until 13 yr of age, and from the Early Treatment of the Allergic Child Study (ETAC), which collected DNA and clinical data of over 330 children with atopic dermatitis during their first 2 yr of life. We genotyped DNA from these children by melting curve analysis using fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) probes. We could not confirm the previously reported association of g.1-1413G>A and g.1-693G>A with atopic phenotypes in our pediatric cohorts. Also four other ICOS variants at putative binding sites for transcription factors showed no association with atopic dermatitis, asthma, allergic sensitization and allergic rhinitis. Our data suggest that these ICOS variants do not play a major role in the development of atopy in European children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have recently shown that loss-of-function mutations in the filaggrin gene, carried by about 10% of people of European ethnicity, cause ichthyosis vulgaris and are strong predisposing factors for atopic dermatitis and asthma secondary to atopic dermatitis. These results demonstrate a prominent role for the epidermal barrier in atopic disease and have important implications for the study of complex traits.Journal of Investigative Dermatology (2006) 126, 1200–1202. doi:10.1038/sj.jid.5700365 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study that identified different phenotypes and determined if certain subtypes are at higher risk to develop comorbid atopic disease. Topics discussed include identification of subtypes of atopic dermatitis and associations between early phenotypes of atopic dermatitis and other allergic disease and comments on the study.