For children with asthma, there was no increase in allergic sensitization to inhalant allergens from 1999-2014, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Paula Mohyi, MD, and colleagues conducted a retrospective cohort study to examine whether sensitizations to seasonal and perennial allergens increased among children with asthma during the 15-year study. Participants received skin prick tests to dust mites, cat, dog, cockroach, tree pollen, grass pollen, and weed pollen; the percent positivity for these allergens was determined each year. During the study period, 123,209 tests were performed for 5,874 unique patients. All patients were diagnosed with asthma by an asthma specialist. The researchers found that compared with other allergens, more patients were sensitized to cockroach and dust mite. During the study period, there was no increase observed in the prevalence of allergic sensitization to any specific perennial or seasonal allergen. Furthermore, there was no increased prevalence of sensitization to any pollen or allergen.
