| 1. |
- Almqvist, C, et al.
(author)
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School as a risk environment for children allergic to cats and a site for transfer of cat allergen to homes
- 1999
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In: Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. - : Elsevier. - 0091-6749 .- 1097-6825. ; 103:6, s. 1012-1017
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Many children are allergic to furred pets and avoid direct pet contact. The school may be a site of indirect exposure to pet allergens, which may induce or maintain symptoms of allergic diseases.OBJECTIVE: We sought to investigate airborne levels of cat allergen (Fel d 1) at schools and in homes with or without cats and to study clothes as a route for dissemination of allergens between homes and school.METHODS: Airborne cat allergen was collected with personal samplers from (1) children attending classes with many (>25%) or few (<10%) cat owners and (2) homes with or without cats. A recently developed amplified ELISA assay, which detects low levels of airborne cat allergen in pet-free environments, was used. Dust samples were collected from clothes and mattresses.RESULTS: There was a 5-fold difference in the median levels of airborne cat allergen between classes with many and few cat owners (2.94 vs 0.59 ng/m3; P <.001). The median airborne cat allergen concentration in classes with many cat owners was significantly higher than that found in the homes of non-cat owners (P <.001) but lower than that found in homes with cats (P <.001). Allergen levels in non-cat owners' clothes increased after a school day (P <.001). Non-cat owners in classes with many cat owners had higher levels of mattress-bound cat allergen (P =.01).CONCLUSION: The results indicate significant exposure to cat allergen at school. Allergen is spread through clothing from homes with cats to classrooms. There the allergen is dispersed in air and contaminates the clothes of children without cats. The allergen levels in non-cat owners' homes correlate with exposure to cat allergen at school.
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| 2. |
- Egmar, Ann-Charlotte, et al.
(author)
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Cat and dog allergen in mattresses and textile covered floors of homes which do or do not have pets, either in the past or currently
- 1998
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In: Pediatric Allergy and Immunology. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0905-6157 .- 1399-3038. ; 9:1, s. 31-35
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The aim of this study was to measure the levels of cat and dog allergen in homes of families that had either never kept pets or kept or had kept cats or dogs. From a small residential area outside Stockholm consisting of 250 houses with similar exteriors 70 homes were included. Dust samples were collected from mattresses and textile-covered floors. The levels of cat and dog allergen were analysed by ELISA. Fel d1 was found in mattress dust in all 70 homes, median 0.5 micrograms/g [0.24-8.89 micrograms/g (quartiles)] and textile-covered floors 0.7 micrograms/g (0.20-2.52 micrograms/g). Can f1, was found in 98% of the collected samples, mattress dust 1.89 micrograms/g (0.70-9.20 micrograms/g) and textile-covered floor dust 2.5 micrograms/g (1.04-2.72 micrograms/g). There was a positive correlation (p < 0.001) between allergen levels in dust from mattresses and textile-covered floors for both Fel d1 (r = 0.68) and Can f1 (r = 0.78). The highest levels of cat and dog allergen were found in homes with furred pets (p < 0.001). A significant (p < 0.001) difference was seen in the levels of Fel d1 and Can f1 between the homes of former pet-owners and homes without pets. In summary; cat and dog allergens are present in homes regardless of whether such animals live in the house or not. Mattresses seem to be an underestimated reservoir for pet allergens even in homes without pets. It is important to note that the homes of former pet owners have much lower levels of allergen than current pet owners.
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| 3. |
- Egmar, Ann-Charlotte, et al.
(author)
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Deposition of cat (Fel d 1), dog (Can f 1), and horse allergen over time in public environments--a model of dispersion
- 1998
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In: Allergy. European Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0105-4538 .- 1398-9995. ; 53:10, s. 957-961
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- BACKGROUND: The occurrence and accumulation over time in public environments of cat, dog, and horse allergens was evaluated.METHODS: Concentrations of animal danders were analyzed by ELISA and countercurrent immunoelectrophoresis (CCIE).RESULTS: Among factory-new mattresses, 15/17 contained detectable levels of cat and/or dog allergen, whereas no horse allergen was found although six of the mattresses were stuffed with horsehair. Dust from 15 used mattresses contained significantly higher concentrations of Fe1 d 1 and Can f 1 than the factory-new ones (P < 0.001). Allergen concentrations and titers correlated to the period of time that the mattresses had been tried by customers; rs = 0.52-0.77, P = 0.04-0.001 (cat), rs = 0.38-0.48, P = 0.15-0.08 (dog), and rs = 0.64-0.74, P = 0.008-0.003 (horse). The increase over time occurred rapidly in highly frequented stores and after 3 weeks reached concentrations that have been found in homes where furred pets had formerly been kept or even the lower allergen scale of homes where pets were currently kept.CONCLUSIONS: The dispersion of allergens from furred animals to pet-free public places is likely to occur by deposition from people who have been in direct or indirect contact with pets, and high levels of such allergens seem to accumulate in a short period of time.
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