[Hypersensitivity to mites and house dust].

The paper deals with the current data on hypersensitivity to house dust allergens, particularly to house dust mite allergens. Hypersensitivity to house dust mites is more prevalent than hypersensitivity to any other allergen. Ecologic factors for mite survival are cited, particularly emphasizing the importance of air humidity. Over the last 50 years there have been several changes in construction and furnishing of houses in developed countries which fostered mite proliferation. Mite allergens are identified and cloned, monoclonal antibodies to these allergens are produced. There are methods for estimating mite allergen concentration in homes which made possible to investigate the relationship between mite allergen exposure and development of bronchial hyperreactivity. Various methods for mite allergen avoidance are developed and their efficacy is under investigation.