Allergy and allergy-like symptoms in 1,050 medical students.

During a 10-year period, 1,050 medical students were questioned regarding allergy and allergy-like symptoms and 612 of them underwent skin prick tests with dog, cat, timothy and birch allergens. Symptoms of eczema, asthma or non-infectious rhmitis, past or current, or current reactions to pollen furred animals, dust, mould or food were reported by 46% of the students. Three per cent reported present eczema of the flexure type and a further 8% reported past symptoms of the same kind. Current contact eczema was reported by 7% and past contact eczema by a further 3%. Daily treatment with ointments was reported by 52% of the students with current flexure eczema and by 17% with current contact eczema. Current asthma was reported by 5% and past asthma by a further 3%. Of these with current asthma, 88% were allergic to pollens and/or furred animals and 75% used anti-asthmatic drugs for at least 2 weeks/year. Current allergic symptoms in the nose and/or eyes were reported by 29% and a further 2% reported past symptoms. Of those with current symptoms 64% were allergic to pollens and/or furred animals, as judged by the history and skin tests. Almost 60% of the students with pollen allergy used anti-allergic drugs for at least 2 weeks/year. Allergy for pollens was reported by 17% to animals by 12%, to house dust by 10%, to moulds by 2% and to foods by 15%. Allergy reported and confirmed by a Prick test was found in 8% against birch, 6% against timothy, 10% against cat and 5% against dog. These prevalence figures are high, but are in accordance with those in other recent studies. Interestingly, no tendency to increasing figures with time was found during the study period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]