A. von Berg

World Allergy Organization (WAO) Diagnosis and Rationale for Action against Cow's Milk Allergy (DRACMA) Guidelines.

Alessandro Fiocchi, MD, Pediatric Division, Department of Child and Maternal Medicine, University of Milan Medical School at the Melloni Hospital, Milan 20129, Italy. Holger Schünemann, MD, Department of Clinical Epidemiology & Biostatistics, McMaster University Health Sciences Centre, 1200 Main Street West Hamilton, ON L8N 3Z5, Canada. Sami L. Bahna, MD, Pediatrics & Medicine, Allergy & Immunology, Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, Shreveport, LA 71130. Andrea Von Berg, MD, Research Institute, Children s department , Marien-Hospital, Wesel, Germany. Kirsten Beyer, MD, Charité Klinik für Pädiatrie m.S. Pneumologie und Immunologie, Augustenburger Platz 1, D-13353 Berlin, Germany. Martin Bozzola, MD, Department of Pediatrics, British Hospital-Perdriel 74-CABA-Buenos Aires, Argentina. Julia Bradsher, PhD, Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network, 11781 Lee Jackson Highway, Suite 160, Fairfax, VA 22033. Jan Brozek, MD, Department of Clinical Epidemiology & Biostatistics, McMaster University Health Sciences Centre, 1200 Main Street West Hamilton, ON L8N 3Z5, Canada. Enrico Compalati, MD, Allergy & Respiratory Diseases Clinic, Department of Internal Medicine. University of Genoa, 16132, Genoa, Italy. Motohiro Ebisawa, MD, Department of Allergy, Clinical Research Center for Allergy and Rheumatology, Sagamihara National Hospital, Kanagawa 228-8522, Japan. Maria Antonieta Guzman, MD, Immunology and Allergy Division, Clinical Hospital University of Chile, Santiago, Chile. Santos Dumont 999. Haiqi Li, MD, Professor of Pediatric Division, Department of Primary Child Care, Children’s Hospital, Chongqing Medical University, China, 400014. Ralf G. Heine, MD, FRACP, Department of Allergy & Immunology, Royal Children’s Hospital, University of Melbourne, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia. Paul Keith, MD, Allergy and Clinical Immunology Division, Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Gideon Lack, MD, King’s College London, Asthma-UK Centre in Allergic Mechanisms of Asthma, Department of Pediatric Allergy, St Thomas’ Hospital, London SE1 7EH, United Kingdom. Massimo Landi, MD, National Pediatric Healthcare System, Italian Federation of Pediatric Medicine, Territorial Pediatric Primary Care Group, Turin, Italy. Alberto Martelli, MD, Pediatric Division, Department of Child and Maternal Medicine, University of Milan Medical School at the Melloni Hospital, Milan 20129, Italy. Fabienne Rancé, MD, Allergologie, Hôpital des Enfants, Pôle Médicochirurgical de Pédiatrie, 330 av. de Grande Bretagne, TSA 70034, 31059 Toulouse CEDEX, France. Hugh Sampson, MD, Jaffe Food Allergy Institute, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, One Gustave L. Levy Place, NY 10029-6574. Airton Stein, MD, Conceicao Hospital, Porto Alegre, Brazil. Luigi Terracciano, MD, Pediatric Division, Department of Child and Maternal Medicine, University of Milan Medical School at the Melloni Hospital, Milan 20129, Italy. Stefan Vieths, MD, Division of Allergology, Paul-EhrlichInstitut, Federal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines, Paul-Ehrlich-Str. 51-59, D-63225 Langen, Germany.

The co-seasonal application of anti-IgE after preseasonal specific immunotherapy decreases ocular and nasal symptom scores and rescue medication use in grass pollen allergic children

Background: Specific immunotherapy (SIT) and treatment with anti‐immunoglobulin (Ig)E antibody are complementary approaches to treat allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, which may be used for single or combined treatment.

Meta-analysis of mould and dampness exposure on asthma and allergy in eight European birth cohorts: an ENRIECO initiative

To cite this article: Tischer CG, Hohmann C, Thiering E, Herbarth O, Müller A, Henderson J, Granell R, Fantini MP, Luciano L, Bergström A, Kull I, Link E, von Berg A, Kuehni CE, Strippoli M‐PF, Gehring U, Wijga A, Eller E, Bindslev‐Jensen C, Keil T, Heinrich J & as part of the ENRIECO consortium. Meta‐analysis of mould and dampness exposure on asthma and allergy in eight European birth cohorts: an ENRIECO initiative. Allergy 2011; 66: 1570–1579.

Infant eczema, infant sleeping problems, and mental health at 10 years of age: the prospective birth cohort study LISAplus

To cite this article: Schmitt J, Chen C‐M, Apfelbacher C, Romanos M, Lehmann I, Herbarth O, Schaaf B, Kraemer U, von Berg A, Wichmann H‐E, Heinrich J, the LISA‐plus Study Group. Infant eczema, infant sleeping problems, and mental health at 10 years of age: the prospective birth cohort study LISAplus. Allergy 2011; 66: 404–411.

European birth cohort studies on asthma and atopic diseases: I. Comparison of study designs – a GA2LEN initiative

Background:  The reasons for the rise in asthma and allergies remain unclear. To identify risk or protective factors, it is essential to carry out longitudinal epidemiological studies, preferably birth cohort studies. In Europe, several birth cohort studies on asthma and atopic diseases have been initiated over the last two decades.

Respiratory health in children, and indoor exposure to (1,3)-β-D-glucan, EPS mould components and endotoxin.

For a long time, exposure to mould and dampness-derived microbial components was considered a risk factor for the development of respiratory diseases and symptoms. Some recent studies suggested that early childhood exposure to mould components, such as (1,3)-&bgr;-d-glucan and extracellular polysaccharides (EPSs), may protect children from developing allergy. We investigated the association of exposure to (1,3)-&bgr;-d-glucan, EPS and endotoxin with asthma and allergies in 6-yr-old children. This investigation was the follow-up to a nested case–control study among three European birth cohorts. Children from two ongoing birth cohort studies performed in Germany (n = 358) and one in the Netherlands (n = 338) were selected. Levels of (1,3)-&bgr;-d-glucan, EPS and endotoxin were measured in settled house dust sampled from children’s mattresses and living-room floors when the children were, on average, 5 yrs of age. At the age of 6 yrs, health outcome information was available for 678 children. In the two German subsets, domestic EPS and endotoxin exposure from children’s mattresses were significantly negatively associated with physician-diagnosed asthma (OR per interquartile range increase 0.60 (95% CI 0.39–0.92) and 0.55 (95% CI 0.31–0.97), respectively). In addition, EPS exposure was inversely related to physician-diagnosed allergic rhinitis (OR 0.50, 95% CI 0.31–0.81). For the Dutch population, no associations were observed between exposure to microbial agents and respiratory health outcomes. We found inverse associations between domestic exposure to EPS and endotoxin from children’s mattresses, and doctor-diagnosed asthma and rhinitis in German, but not in Dutch, school children. The reasons for the differences between countries are not clear.

European birth cohort studies on asthma and atopic diseases: II. Comparison of outcomes and exposures – a GA2LEN initiative

Background:  The Global Allergy and Asthma European Network (GA2LEN) is a consortium of 26 leading European research centres committed to establish a European research area of excellence in the field of allergy and asthma.

Atopic eczema in children: another harmful sequel of divorce.

Background:  Different lifestyle factors seem to be associated with the risk for atopic diseases and some studies suggest that stress increases the risk of allergic sensitization, asthma and atopic eczema. Only few studies have investigated the association of early stressful life events and atopic eczema (AE) in children.

Safety and efficacy of a new extensively hydrolyzed formula for infants with cow’s milk protein allergy

Cow’s milk protein allergy (CMPA) is best treated by complete elimination of cow’s milk from the diet. For infants with CMPA who cannot be breast‐fed, formulas based on extensively hydrolyzed proteins or on amino acids are the preferred substitutes for cow’s milk‐based formulas. In this study, we compared the tolerance and growth of infants with CMPA who were fed a new extensively hydrolyzed formula containing lactose (eHF) with those who were fed an amino acid formula (AAF). This was a prospective, multi‐center, randomized, reference‐controlled study. Seventy‐seven infants <12 months old with suspected CMPA were enrolled. In 66 of these, CMPA was confirmed by oral challenge in a double‐blind, placebo‐controlled food challenge (DBPCFC) or by a medical history of severe allergic reaction to cow’s milk and a positive skin prick test. These infants were then tested for their reaction to eHF and AAF in a DBPCFC. All infants tolerated both formulas and were randomized to receive either eHF (n = 34) or AAF (n = 32) for 180 days. Growth (weight, length, and head circumference) and tolerance [skin, gastro‐intestinal, and respiratory tract symptoms of allergy] were evaluated after 30, 60, 90, and 180 days. There were no significant differences between the two groups in any of the growth measurements. Length and head circumference were similar to Euro‐growth standards, but weight was slightly lower. Gastro‐intestinal and respiratory tract symptoms of allergy were also similar in the two groups. However, whereas SCORAD scores for atopic dermatitis remained constant throughout the study in infants‐fed eHF, there was a slight decrease in those fed AAF. Infants‐fed eHF had significantly fewer incidents of vomiting than infants‐fed AAF and a significantly higher frequency of soft stools. The new eHF is safe and well tolerated in infants diagnosed with CMPA.

Genome-wide association study of body mass index in 23 000 individuals with and without asthma

Both asthma and obesity are complex disorders that are influenced by environmental and genetic factors. Shared genetic factors between asthma and obesity have been proposed to partly explain epidemiological findings of co‐morbidity between these conditions.