The effect of single and multiple infections on atopy and wheezing in children.

Neuza Maria Alcantara-Neves; Rafael Valente Veiga; Vitor Camilo Cavalcante Dattoli; Rosimeire Leovigildo Fiaccone; Renata Esquivel; Álvaro Augusto Cruz; Philip John Cooper; Laura Cunha Rodrigues; Maurício Lima Barreto; (2012) The effect of single and multiple infections on atopy and wheezing in children. The Journal of allergy and clinical immunology, 129 (2). 359-367.e3. ISSN 0091-6749 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaci.2011.09.015
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BACKGROUND: The current epidemic of asthma and atopy has been explained by alterations in immune responses related to reduction in childhood infections. However, the findings of epidemiologic studies investigating the association between infection with atopy and asthma have been inconsistent. OBJECTIVE: We sought to investigate the effect of single or multiple infections (pathogen burden) on atopy and wheeze in urban children from Latin America. METHODS: Specific IgE against aeroallergens (sIgE) and skin prick test (SPT) reactivity for the most common local allergens were measured in 1128 children aged 4 to 11 years. Data on wheezing and potential confounders were collected by questionnaire. Infections by 8 pathogens were assessed by using serology and stool examination. Associations of wheeze and atopic outcomes with single and multiple infections were analyzed by means of logistic regression. RESULTS: Negative results for Toxoplasma gondii were associated with a higher prevalence of sIgE (≥0.70 kU/L), whereas negative results for Ascaris lumbricoides, T gondii, herpes simplex virus, and EBV were associated with a higher prevalence of SPT reactivity. Children with 3 or fewer infection markers had a higher prevalence of sIgE and SPT reactivity compared with those with 4 or more infection markers. However, isolated infections or pathogen burden were not associated with the prevalence of atopic or nonatopic wheeze. CONCLUSION: The findings provide support for the idea that the hygiene hypothesis is operating in an urban Latin American context, but its expression is thus far restricted to the atopic status of patients and not the perceived asthma symptoms.

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