Prospective epidemiologic study on respiratory diseases in children and immunization against measles.
BACKGROUND
A hypothesis that vaccination with live attenuated measles virus performed in early childhood may prevent allergic sensitization has been explored in the course of a 3-year follow-up study in Kraków (Poland) among 1005 school children.


METHODS
The basic respiratory health end-points were chronic respiratory symptoms, allergy, asthma and susceptibility to acute respiratory infections. Information about immunization status of children was extracted from individual vaccination records kept by school nurses. The study showed the highest rates of chronic respiratory symptoms in non-vaccinated children who contracted measles while the lowest rates in those vaccinated who did not contract the disease.


CONCLUSIONS
Risk of allergy diagnosed by a physician in vaccinated children after adjustment to potential confounders was about half of that in the reference group (OR = 0.58 95% CI: 0.42-0.80), the same was found for asthma diagnosed by a physician (OR = 0.50 95% CI: 0.24-1.00), and for susceptibility to respiratory infections (OR = 0.51 95% CI: 0.36-0.72). Our data provide indirect evidence that infection with attenuated measles virus is able to alter immunological reactions being responsible for the manifestation of respiratory symptoms and allergy.
Jedrychowski
Wiesław
W
Chair of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Collegium Medicum, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland. myjedryc@cyf-kr.edu.pl
Maugeri
Umberto
U
Jedrychowska-Bianchi
Iwona
I
D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008458:Measles Vaccine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D011044:Poland / Q000453:epidemiology; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012130:Respiratory Hypersensitivity / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D012141:Respiratory Tract Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*
D008458:Measles Vaccine