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Early rhinovirus, aeroallergen sensitization linked to asthma persistence in adolescence
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Rhinovirus and aeroallergen sensitization during early childhood remained risk factors for the persistence of asthma into adolescence, study data suggest.
“Although the role of viruses and allergic sensitization has been clearly implicated in the onset of asthma, their role in the persistence of asthma into later childhood and early adolescence has not been as well-studied,” Frederick J. Rubner, MD, in the departments of pediatrics and medicine at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and colleagues wrote in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. “The current findings extend our previous observations by demonstrating that these events are not only important in early childhood, but increase asthma risk at least until the onset of adolescence.”
To support their earlier studies, the researchers followed 217 children prospectively from birth to age 13 years. During the patients’ first 3 years, Rubner and colleagues examined the etiology and timing of rhinovirus and respiratory syncytial virus, and they determined patterns of allergen sensitization. At age 13 years, the researchers assessed asthma diagnoses and determined whether this was associated with their findings when the patients were aged 3 years.
Rubner and colleagues found that wheezing with rhinovirus (OR = 3.3; 95% CI, 1.5-7.1), but not respiratory syncytial virus, was associated with having asthma at age 13 years. Using multivariate stepwise analysis, they observed an association between aeroallergen sensitization when patients were aged 1 year and asthma at 13 years (OR = 6; 95% CI, 2.5-14.4).
“Interestingly, if sensitization developed in children after age 5 years, their asthma risk was no different from children who never developed sensitization,” Rubner and colleagues wrote. “These patterns indicate that the timing of sensitization contributes significantly to future asthma risk during childhood.” – by Will Offit
Disclosure: Infectious Diseases in Children was unable to confirm relevant financial disclosures at the time of publication.
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