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Mite, cockroach among major allergens in rural, urban Vietnam

Mite and cockroach were identified as major allergens in rural and urban areas of Vietnam, according to recently published data.

“The dominant sensitizer was the storage mite B. tropicalis, which should be included in future studies and also in clinical practice, owing to its association with clinical symptoms,” Hoàng Thị Lâm, MD, PhD, of the department of allergy and clinical immunology at Hanoi Medical University and Bachmai Hospital in Hanoi, Vietnam, and colleagues wrote.

Hoàng Thị Lâm

The researchers designed a random sample of patients (684 of 5,782) who participated in a survey in northern Vietnam.

Participation data indicated that responses were greater in Bavi than in Hoankiem (57.5% vs. 33.6%; P<.001). Those aged older than 45 years were more likely to attend compared with younger patients (51.5% vs. 39.8%; P<.001); and women compared with men (49.5% vs. 41.7%; P=.002).

Allergic sensitization data indicated that more men vs. women were sensitized to both mites (30.9% vs. 21.8%; P=.017) and cockroach (16.5% vs. 10.2%; P=.033).

Moreover, 34.1% of men were sensitized to either mites or cockroach vs. 26.1% women (P=.042), researchers wrote.

The most common sensitizer among men and women was the storage mite B. tropicalis (men, 27.7%; women, 18.7%; P=.013). Other common sensitizers were house dust mites D. pteronyssinus (men, 16.5%; women, 10.6%; P=.045), D. farinae (men, 15.3%; women, 6.3%; P=.001), and cockroach (men, 16.5%; women, 10.2%; P=.033).

Sensitizations to animals, pollen, and molds, however, were low; most cockroach-sensitized patients also were sensitized to mites, researchers said.

Bronchial hyper reactivity was linked to an increased number of positive skin prick tests (P=.047), according to data.

“Our study adds to the notion that asthma is less associated with sensitization in Southeast Asia compared to in the Western world; however the underlying reasons are incompletely known,” the investigators concluded.

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.