title: Comparison of skin tests to aeroallergens in Ankara and Seoul.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The environment contains many allergenic proteins, and skin test reactivity to aeroallergens may be different among people living in different regions.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To compare skin test results of Turkish and Korean patients with respiratory allergies.
  
  
  METHODS
  The charts of 304 (160 male, 144 female) patients from Ankara, Turkey, and 208 (111 male, 97 female) patients' charts from Seoul, Korea, who had undergone skin prick tests were reviewed. Skin tests were classified as positive when the allergen-induced wheal size was the same size or larger than that caused by histamine.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Grass pollens were found to be major allergens more often in Ankara than in Seoul (74.34% vs. 15.87%, p < 0.001). Skin test reactivities in Ankara were significantly lower (p < 0.001) than in Seoul to weed (6.91% vs. 37.50%) and tree pollens (4.61% vs. 39.42%). Allergic reactions to indoor allergens were significantly higher (p < 0.001) in Seoul than in Ankara: house dust mites (HDM) (83.17% vs. 32.90%), cockroaches (45.67% vs. 1.97%), and cats (17.79% vs. 1.65%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Due to the different aeroallergen environment, the positive skin test results were different in both cities: grass pollens were the most common allergens in Ankara, while patients from Seoul reacted more commonly to indoor allergens, especially to HDMs and cockroaches.
authors.affiliation: Division of Allergy, Gulhane Military Medical Academy, Ankara, Turkey. osener@gata.edu.tr
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Sener
authors.forename: Y K
authors.initials: YK
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ceylan
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ozanguc
authors.forename: T J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Yoo
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000485:Allergens / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D001249:Asthma / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007428:Intradermal Tests / Q000379:methods*; D007723:Korea; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011336:Probability; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012221:Rhinitis, Allergic, Perennial / Q000175:diagnosis*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014421:Turkey; D014505:Urban Population
chemical_list: D000485:Allergens