Common Aeroallergens by Skin Prick Test among the Population in Two Different Regions

Objectives: The purpose of this study primarily was to determine and characterise the common allergens found using skin prick test both in Malaysia and the Netherlands. Study Design: This is retrospective cross-sectional descriptive study which the data was collected from two different hospitals. Methodology: The study population included patients with history of atopy and / or diagnosed with any forms of allergy, mainly nasal allergy that were referred for skin prick test. Results: In 284 respondents, the Asians showed significantly (p<0.001) higher percentage of positive response towards most of the subgroups of aeroallergen especially house dust mite (82.4%) as compared to the Europeans (41.2%). More than half (84.3%) of the Asian population had positive test responses to one or more aeroallergens and the highest prevalence was for house dust mite, 69% 78% (Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus, Dermatophagoides farinae and Blomia sp.) followed by cat fur (40.6%) and Alternaria sp. (38.2%). Even the European has higher prevalence of positive response towards house dust mite subgroup (24.7%) in comparison with fungi and epidermals with 3.9% and 8.8% respectively (p<0.001). However, the prevalence for both Bermuda grass and grain pollen (20.9%) in Europe were more or less the same with house dust mite, 21% 25% (Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and Dermatophagoides farinae). The least frequent aeroallergen for both Asia and Europe was dog hair (30.6% and 1.7% respectively). Conclusions: House dust mites are the most common aeroallergens in the two different regions. *Corresponding author: Zulkiflee AB, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Malaysia, Tel: 60192212528; E-mail: abzulkiflee@yahoo.com Received September 20, 2015; Accepted November 02, 2015; Published November 09, 2015 Citation: Siti Nadzrah Y, Zulkiflee AB, Prepageran N (2015) Common Aeroallergens by Skin Prick Test among the Population in Two Different Regions. Primary Health Care 5: 206. doi:10.4172/2167-1079.1000206 Copyright: © 2015 Siti Nadzrah Y, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Introduction Allergy is an immune-mediated hypersensitivity reaction involving specific recognition of a particular allergen and the production of specific immunoglobulins, usually of isotype E (IgE) [1]. This hypersensitivity reaction is often described as type 1 allergic reaction. An allergic reaction of this kind can be manifested in the lungs (allergic asthma), in the eyes and nose (conjunctivitis and allergic rhinitis), or in the skin (atopic eczema). Among those, allergic rhinitis is considered the most common manifestation, furthermore aeroallergens are important contributing factors causing the symptoms in allergic rhinitis [2,3]. Various aeroallergens from animals or plants play an important role in the early development of asthma and allergy[4]. Exposure to aeroallergens increases the risk of sensitisation and the development of allergic respiratory complaints [5]. Many studies have shown that the distribution and pattern of aeroallergen is significantly different in different countries and even in different parts of a country [6,7]. Herbal geography, climate and temperature are responsible for the variations [8]. Among these, climate affects many aspects of allergy and allergen exposure, including the type and frequency of allergens in any particular geographic location, exposure to food and insect allergens, cross-reactivity among allergens, and the prevalence of allergy-related diseases [9-27]. The incidence of allergy is increasing throughout the world with increasing trend of skin prick test positivity [2]. In the latter decades of the twentieth century, there was a rise in the prevalence of allergy, particularly in children, not only in the Netherlands but also in other western countries [28-30]. According to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, as many as 50 million people in the United States suffer from various types of allergies [31]. Of these, 20.3 million have asthma, a chronic lung disease often triggered by allergies. These allergic conditions affect all ages in all countries, with signs and symptoms and types of allergens changing according to the ages of the sufferer [2]. In Malaysia, one out of three people is allergic to something and it is expected to affect 50% of Malaysians by the year 2020 [32]. Around 50% of world’s teenagers were already suffering from airway allergies such as allergic rhinitis [33]. In addition, a study from the Netherlands done in year 2002 also reported the prevalence of ‘nasal allergy’ in adults has risen since 1992 [34]. Allergy is one of the common disorders that have major influence on quality of life which also contributes to academic and occupational absenteeism with significant impact on health care expenditure [35-39]. Therefore, it is useful to identify the common allergens that provoke allergic reaction so that prevention from exposure to these allergens can be made to reduce the potential health catastrophe from occurring. The purpose of this study primarily was to determine and characterise the common allergens found using skin prick test both in Malaysia and the Netherlands. The secondary objective was to compare the allergens between two countries, which were an emerging developing country in Asia like Malaysia and developed country in Europe like the Netherlands; with different economical, lifestyle and climate. Citation: Siti Nadzrah Y, Zulkiflee AB, Prepageran N (2015) Common Aeroallergens by Skin Prick Test among the Population in Two Different Regions. Primary Health Care 5: 206. doi:10.4172/2167-1079.1000206