Allergy Division, Hospital S. João, EPE, Porto, Portugal.
J Investig Allergol Clin Immunol. 2010;20(3):210-3.
Screening for allergic diseases allows an early diagnosis to be made, thus reducing socioeconomic burden and enhancing quality of life. We determined the prevalence of elevated exhaled nitric oxide (eNO) levels and sensitization to common airborne allergens in schoolchildren from different socioeconomic backgrounds.
The study population comprised 271 children (136 boys) aged between 8 and 12 years in whom we applied skin prick tests and determined eNO levels.
Thirty-five percent of the children were identified as atopic. There was a significantly higher prevalence of atopy in boys (43% vs. 27%). Among the children with a high socioeconomic status, 37% were atopic, compared with 30% of those with a low socioeconomic status. We observed a significantly lower prevalence of pollen sensitization in children of lower socioeconomic status (10% vs. 20%). In the atopic group, 51% had elevated eNO levels, while in the nonatopic group this value was 4%. The mean (SD) eNO level was 33.4 (26.6) ppb in the atopic group and 11.9 (6.4) ppb in the nonatopic group. No differences were found for eNO values in terms of gender or socioeconomic status.
Our results emphasize the high prevalence of atopy in our population and suggest that determination of eNO levels could help to provide an early diagnosis. We also observed the following: (a) a significant difference in mean eNO values between atopic and nonatopic children; (b) a significantly lower prevalence of pollen sensitization in children of lower socioeconomic status; and (c) a higher prevalence of atopy in boys.
过敏性疾病的筛查可实现早期诊断，从而减轻社会经济负担并提高生活质量。我们确定了来自不同社会经济背景的学龄儿童中呼出的一氧化氮（eNO）水平升高和对常见空气过敏原致敏的患病率。
该研究人群包括 271 名 8 至 12 岁的儿童（136 名男孩），我们对其进行了皮肤点刺试验和 eNO 水平测定。
35%的儿童被确定为特应性。男孩的特应性患病率明显更高（43%比 27%）。在社会经济地位较高的儿童中，37%为特应性，而社会经济地位较低的儿童中这一比例为 30%。我们观察到社会经济地位较低的儿童花粉致敏的患病率明显较低（10%比 20%）。在特应性组中，51%的儿童 eNO 水平升高，而非特应性组这一比例为 4%。特应性组的平均（SD）eNO 水平为 33.4（26.6）ppb，而非特应性组为 11.9（6.4）ppb。eNO 值在性别或社会经济地位方面没有差异。
我们的研究结果强调了我们人群中特应性的高患病率，并表明 eNO 水平的测定可能有助于提供早期诊断。我们还观察到：（a）特应性和非特应性儿童的 eNO 值存在显著差异；（b）社会经济地位较低的儿童花粉致敏的患病率明显较低；（c）男孩中特应性的患病率更高。
