Changes in Skin Test Aeroallergen Sensitization in Mexico Over the Past 14 Years and According to Climate

Désirée Larenas-Linnemann,1 Blanca María Morfín-Maciel,2 Victor Gonzalez-Uribe,3 Claudia Ivonne Gallego-Corella,4 Germán Agustín Rico-Solís,5 Luiana Hernández-Velázquez,6 Daniel García-Imperial,7 Chrystopherson Gengyny Caballero-Lopez,8 Ondina Marlene Garibay-Vargas,9 José Luis Gálvez-Romero,10 Daniela García Fajardo,11 Joel Barroso-Santos,12 Herberth de Jesús Pérez-Áviles,13 Jorge Agustín Luna-Pech,14 Cecilia Yvonne García-Cobas,15 Kareli Guadalupe Coronado-Hernández,16 Margarita Ortega-Cisneros,17 Carlos Humberto González-Gutiérrez,18 Daniela Rivero-Yeverino,8 Elsy Maureen Navarrete-Rodríguez,19 Leticia Lezama-Vázquez,20 Karen Lilian Rivera-Alvarado,21 Georgina Guadalupe Ochoa-López,22 Sara Elizabeth Covarrubias-Ramírez,23 Claudia Patricia Reyes-Galindo,24 Beatriz Bayardo-Gutiérrez,25 María del Carmen Calderón-Ezquerro26 1Centro de Excelencia en Asma y Alergia Larenas, Hospital Médica Sur, Mexico City, DF, Mexico; 2Private practice, Mexico City, DF, Mexico; 3AlergiaMx, Mexico City, DF, Mexico; 4Centro de Alergia y Asma de Tijuana, Tijuana, BCN, Mexico; 5Hospital Regional Valentín Gómez Farías, Department of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Colima, COL, Mexico; 6IMSS Hospital General de Zona Número 8, Ensenada, BCN, Mexico; 7Private Practice, Querétaro, QRO, Mexico; 8Hospital Universitario de Puebla, Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla, Puebla, PUE, Mexico; 9Private practice, Uruapan, MICH, Mexico; 10Jefatura de investigación, Hospital Regional ISSSTE, Puebla, PUE, Mexico; 11Private Practice, San Luis Potosí, SLP, Mexico; 12Private practice, Pachuca, HGO, Mexico; 13Private Practice, Mérida, YUC, Mexico; 14Departamento de Disciplinas Filosófico, Metodológico e Instrumentales, CUCS, Universidad de Guadalajara, JAL, Mexico; 15Alergia e Inmunología, HGR 46, Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, Guadalajara, JAL, Mexico; 16Centro Médico Nacional del Occidente Pediatrics, Guadalajara, JAL, Mexico; 17Centro Médico Nacional de Occidente UMAE Hospital de Especialidades, Department of clinical immunology and allergy, Guadalajara, JAL, Mexico; 18HGZ &num; 1 IMSS, Zacatecas, ZAC, Mexico; 19Hospital Infantil de México ‘Federico Gómez’, Mexico City, DF, Mexico; 20Private practice, Tuxtla-Gutiérrez, CHIS, Mexico; 21IMSS UMAE 14, Veracruz, VER, Mexico; 22Private practice, Ciudad Juárez, CHIH, Mexico; 23Plebitos, Especialidades Pediátricas, Mazatlán, SIN, Mexico; 24ISSSTE, Ciudad Victoria, TAMPS, Mexico; 25Centro Médico Nacional de Occidente UMAE Hospital de Especialidades, Departamento de Inmunología Clínica y Alergia, Hospital Regional ISSSTE, Puebla, PUE, Mexico; 26Instituto de Ciencias de la Atmósfera y Cambio Climático, Universidad Autónoma de México, Mexico City, DF, MexicoCorrespondence: Désirée Larenas-Linnemann, Centro de Excelencia en Asma y Alergia Larenas, Hospital Médica Sur, Torre 2 cons. 602, Puente de Piedra 150, Col. Toriello Guerra, Del. Tlalpan, Ciudad de México, 14050, Mexico, Tel +52-55-5171-2248 ; +5606-6222 Ext.4372 ; +52-55-8509-5950, Email marlar1@prodigy.net.mxIntroduction: Aeroallergen exposure has an intra- and extra-domiciliary component and varies according to climatological zones. Mexico is a large country with a great variety of climates. A previous study (2009) evaluated skin prick test results (SPT) in different regions. In this study, we compare previous sensitization patterns from 14y ago with current ones and compare them between different climatological zones.Methods: Mexican allergists were asked to share their last 100 SPT results in patients with respiratory allergy. Clinics were grouped in (semi)humid vs (semi)dry zones. Results were analyzed nationwide and compared to the 2009 results, calculating odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs), with p < 0.05 as cut-off. Similarly, we compared (semi)humid versus dry zones.Results: We collected 2915 SPT results from 28 clinics (19 cities). Dermatophagoides was the most frequently sensitizing allergen. There was a significant increase in SPT positivity from 2009 to 2023 in both in- and outdoor aeroallergens (OR 1.26– 2.65, 95% CI from 1.06– 1.50 to 1.99– 3.52). Comparing dry-humid zones, sensitization to pollen from Oleaceae, Fagaceae (p < 0.0001 all) and most weeds is more frequent in humid zones, as are Dermatophagoides and cockroach (both p < 0.0001). Eucalyptus, mesquite, and all grass pollen sensitizations predominate in dry zones (p < 0.05– 0.0001). There are no differences in sensitization to cat or dog between zones.Conclusion: We found a general increase in SPT sensitization over the past fourteen years, suggesting that this is probably not only due to climate change. The different sensitization profile throughout the country was mainly related to humidity. Repeating epidemiologic SPT studies over the years could help tracking changes in allergen sensitization over time.Keywords: allergy, diagnosis, skin prick testing, aeroallergen, climate change, pollen allergy, allergic rhinitis, allergic asthma