Abundance of domestic mites in dwellings of children and adolescents with asthma in relation to environmental factors and allergy symptoms

Abstract

Exposure to house dust allergens, mainly from domestic mites, is an important cause of allergic reactions in sensitized asthmatic patients. A total of 63 dust samples were collected from 16 flats in Bytom (south Poland); in each flat a person (age 4–17 years) suffering from bronchial asthma lived with his/her family. Mite density was calculated as the number of specimens per g of dust. The results were compared with household features and the data were statistically analyzed. In total 566 mite specimens were isolated, including 526 members of the family Pyroglyphidae (93%). The dominant species were Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (60% of the total count) and Dermatophagoides farinae (32%). Pyroglyphids were found in all mite positive samples (68%) of which 35% also contained non-pyroglyphids, including glycyphagids, cheyletids and gamasids. The results suggest associations between the density of some mite taxa (per g of dust) and the following indoor environmental factors: presence of pets, number of inhabitants, coal-stoves as a type of heating, cleaning frequency, higher relative humidity, presence of flowers and PVC windows. The severity of asthma seems to be associated with the numbers of D. farinae, total domestic mites and live mites per g of dust.

The Effect of Environmental Factors on Immunological Pathways of Asthma in Children of the Polish Mother and Child Cohort Study

“…Removing dirt or dust plays a significant role in the development of asthma. A group of Polish researchers, on the basis of house dust samples, proved the impact of the density and species composition of house mites in apartments on the severity of bronchial asthma in the studied children [ 31 ]. They also proved that the presence of domestic animals has a positive effect on the density of domestic mites, which we were not able to confirm in our group in a logistic regression analysis.…”

Effects of Dietary Components on Mast Cells: Possible Use as Nutraceuticals for Allergies?

“…Their high prevalence may be due to a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Exposure to allergens, pollutants, and changes in living conditions can affect a person's immune response [5][6][7].…”