| Mite and Pet Allergen Levels in Homes of Children Born to Allergic and Nonallergic Parents: The PIAMA Study Rob T. van Strien,1 Laurens P. Koopman,2 Marjan Kerkhof,3 Jack Spithoven,1 Johan C. de Jongste,2
Jorrit Gerritsen,4 Herman J. Neijens,2 Rob C. Aalberse,5 Henriette A. Smit,6 and Bert Brunekreef1 1Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands; 2Department of Pediatrics, Sophia Children's Hospital, Rotterdam, The Netherlands; 3Department of Epidemiology and Statistics, University Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands; 4Department of Pediatric Respiratory Medicine, University Hospital Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands; 5Central Laboratory for the Blood Transfusion Service, Department of Allergy, Amsterdam, The Netherlands; 6National Institute of Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, The Netherlands Abstract
The Prevention and Incidence of Asthma and Mite Allergy (PIAMA) study is a birth cohort study that investigates the influence of allergen exposure on the development of allergy and asthma in the first several years of life. The objectives of this study were to investigate the relationship between a family history of allergy and/or asthma and exposure of newborn children to mite and pet allergen and to study the influence of different home and occupant characteristics on mite allergen exposure. Dust was sampled from the child's mattress and the parental mattress at 3 months after birth of the index child and analyzed for mite and pet allergens. Subjects were divided in groups according to history of asthma and allergy in their parents, and allergen exposure was studied in the different groups. Cat allergen exposure was significantly lower on parental mattresses in families with allergic mothers, but dog allergen exposure was not different. Mite allergen exposure was lower on parental mattresses in families with allergic mothers. Use of mite allergen-impermeable mattress covers reduced mite allergen exposure. Some other characteristics such as age of home and mattress were also found to influence mite allergen exposure. Parental mattresses in homes of allergic mothers had lower cat and mite (but not dog) allergen loadings than mattresses in homes of nonallergic parents. Paternal (as opposed to maternal) allergy seemed to have little influence. Key words: allergens, infants, mites, pets. Environ Health Perspect 110:A693-A698 (2002) . [Online 10 October 2002] http://ehpnet1.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2002/110pA693-A698vanstrien/ abstract.html Address correspondence to B. Brunekreef, Utrecht University, IRAS-EOH, PO Box 80176, 3508 TD Utrecht, The Netherlands. Telephone: +31 302535400. Fax: +31 302539499. E-mail: b.brunekreef@iras.uu.nl Received 30 January 2002 ; accepted 17 June 2002.
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