title: [Pollionosis: I. Findings on the clinical aspects and the pollen spectrum in 1565 pollen-sensitive patients].
abstract: Case histories are analyzed of 1565 hay fever patients first attending an allergy unit. The mean age of the test persons was 19.5 years. 40% were in the age group 5 to 15 years. The sex distribution showed a slight but statistically significant prevalence of males (56.6%). 56.8% had a positive family history of allergies and 44.2% had other allergic conditions such as atopic dermatitis (31.6%), perennial rhinitis and perennial asthma (19% each), urticaria, food allergy and drug allergy (5% each) and insect sting allergy (3%). A clear cut peak both for rhinitis and for asthmatic symptoms %30.5% and 20.2% respectively) was found in the age group 5--9 years. Up to the 14th year the symptoms of pollen allergy were already exhibited by 68.5% of the patients. 97% of the pollen allergics suffered from rhinitis, 95% from conjunctivitis, 40% from bronchial asthma and another 20% from tracheobronchitis or asthmatic bronchitis. As additional symptoms of pollen allergy due to haematogenous spread of the pollen antigens we observed a seasonal form of atopic dermatitis in 3%, a seasonal urticaria or angioedema in 3.5%, migraine in 6.3% and arthralgia, gastro-intestinal troubles and fever in fewer than 1% each. Almost 98% of the patients were sensitized to grass or cereal pollens. However, only 18% suffered from an isolated grass pollinosis (summer hay fever). The other patients were additionally clinically sensitized by other pollens with different blossoming periods, i.e. 35% by three pollens responsible for the so-called spring pollinosis, and 50% by weeds (plantain, nettle, mugwort) the cause of late summer pollinosis. Only 13 patients suffered from an isolated spring pollinosis (hazel, alder, birch, willow). In 14 patients (not quite 1%) with a clear-cut history and clinical symptoms of pollinosis, all the skin tests were negative. In these cases the sensitization was probably restricted to the respiratory tract. Despite the new in-vitro methods such as the RAST, carefully performed skin tests linked to a knowledge of the pollen calendars of the region and the allergological history remain the most reliable and cheapest procedure for the specific diagnosis of pollen allergy.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001249:Asthma / Q000276:immunology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003876:Dermatitis, Atopic / Q000276:immunology; D004342:Drug Hypersensitivity / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D005512:Food Hypersensitivity / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007299:Insect Bites and Stings / Q000276:immunology; D008297:Male; D011058:Pollen; D011852:Radioallergosorbent Test; D006255:Rhinitis, Allergic, Seasonal / Q000276:immunology*; D012882:Skin Tests; D014581:Urticaria / Q000276:immunology
vernacular_title: Pollinosis: I. Ermittlungen zur Klinik und zum Pollen-spektrum an 1565 Pollenallergikern.