Asthma and Allergic Rhinitis (AR) often occur together, and a study in China, undertaken at the Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing, PR China, has shown that the occurrence of asthma, AR, high IgE levels and nasal eosinophilia in mothers are all associated with an increased risk of offspring developing allergic diseases.

Prevalence of allergic disease in China has increased, and asthma and allergic rhinitis have been found to cluster in families. Five hundred and ninety two women with AR, of which 213 also had asthma, were recruited. Serum IgE levels and nasal eosinophil counts were taken.

The results showed that the presence of allergic disease in children whose mothers had both AR and asthma was significantly higher than those whose mothers only had AR. Maternal serum IgE and nasal eosinophil counts were predictive of allergic disease in offspring. Children born to older mothers (36-40) were protected against developing allergic disease.

Source: International Archive of Allergy and Immunology

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First Published in November 2011

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