The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI) held its annual conference in San Francisco California from March 18-22, 2011. For four days, international health experts in the areas of allergies, immunological disease and asthma came together to discuss best patient practices, and the latest research advances in their areas. Through workshops, seminars, exhibits and symposiums, information about food allergy, eczema, asthma and seasonal allergies was shared and debated.
Food Allergy Study Shared at 2011 AAAAI Conference
Researchers from Duke, Johns Hopkins, Mount Sinai, National Jewish, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and the University of Arkansas studied 500 babies between the ages of three and fifteen months. All of the participants had a history of egg and/or milk allergy, as well as the presence of eczema (atopic dermatitis). Each child was observed over a two year period.
The results of the study indicate that children with more severe eczema are less likely to outgrow their milk and/or egg allergy. Findings from this study will better aid doctors when counseling parents of children with food allergy and eczema.
Asthma Research Discussed at San Francisco Conference
The Centers for Disease Control estimates that 26.2 million Americans are affected by asthma. A study was conducted by the Mayo Clinic and Olmsted Medical Center in Rochester, Minnesota to determine if people with asthma are more likely to have other chronic illness. Over a nineteen year period (1964-1983) nearly 7000 asthmatic and non-asthmatic Rochester residents were followed.
The findings of the study show that asthma was associated with increased risks of developing diabetes and heart disease. There did not appear to be an increased risk for asthmatics to develop inflammatory bowel syndrome or rheumatoid arthritis.
Study of Pollen Counts Affects Seasonal Allergy Sufferers
People who deal with seasonal allergic rhinitis, more commonly called “hay fever,” have been told to avoid the outdoors during high pollen counts. These counts are available from many popular website sources. Researchers from Environmental Allergy Assays in Ontario and the Allergy & Asthma Care Center in North Dakota wanted to know the accuracy of the published counts compared to the day-to-day measurements gathered by AAAAI’s National Allergy Bureau™ (NAB).
After analyzing the data, researchers found that there were differences between the pollen information offered by many websites and the daily counts obtained by NAB. Allergy sufferers are cautioned that many sites may offer counts based on data from the previous year and weather patterns, rather than real-time data.
The AAAAI annual conference provides guidance to doctors and other healthcare clinicians working with people who are dealing with allergies and asthma. Patients should talk with their healthcare provider about how these studies may affect their healthcare choices.
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