Allergy/Asthma News

Although primary care physicians have basic knowledge of alpha-gal syndrome, results of a small survey suggest that many characteristics of the condition are unknown or misunderstood, according to researchers.

Researchers at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia have recently been gifted $2 million to begin conducting a clinical trial studying the effects of dupilumab on patients with eosinophilic esophagitis.

Patients taking dupilumab for atopic dermatitis experienced less severe COVID-19 symptoms than patients who used different or no treatment, according to a study published in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice.

Risk factors for sensitization to alpha-gal include tick bites, male sex and polysensitization to food or airborne allergens, according to a study published in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice.

In a new study, school-aged children in Scotland with uncontrolled asthma had a 3 to 6 times higher risk for COVID-19 hospitalization compared with those without asthma, researchers reported in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine.

People with hay fever, rhinitis, atopic eczema and other allergic conditions had a lower risk for developing COVID-19, particularly if they also had asthma, according to a study published in Thorax.

Study data showed that preschool-aged children with asthma spent significantly more time watching TV than their healthy peers and that poor asthma control was linked with less frequent physical activity.

Maternal obesity appeared associated with increased risk for asthma in offspring, whereas maternal underweight increased risk for childhood dermatitis, according to study results published in Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology.

Most patients with an allergy to sesame were able to tolerate small quantities of intact sesame seeds, according to a study published in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice.

Racial differences in when parents introduce their children to potential allergens may influence the development and manifestations of food allergies, according to a study in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice.