House dust mites on skin, clothes, and bedding of atopic dermatitis patients.
BACKGROUND
Atopic dermatitis is a common allergic condition in children, often associated with a positive skin reaction to house dust mite allergens.


OBJECTIVE
To determine the presence of house dust mites on the skin, clothes, and bedding of patients with atopic dermatitis.


METHODS
Nineteen patients with atopic dermatitis were examined during a 2-year period. Samples from affected and healthy skin surfaces were obtained with adhesive tape, and dust samples from bedding and clothes were collected with a vacuum cleaner at the start of the study and 3-6 weeks later, and examined for the presence of house dust mites. The findings were compared with those of 21 healthy controls.


RESULTS
The most common mite species on skin were Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and Dermatophagoides farinae, which were found in nine patients and three controls. The patient group showed a significantly larger percentage of samples with mites than did the control group (34.9% and 7.9%, respectively) (P < 0.001), and a significantly larger percentage of individuals with at least one positive sample (84.2% and 14.2%, respectively) (P < 0.0001). No correlation was found between the number of mites on the skin and clothes/bedding of patients, or between patients and controls with regard to the number of mites on the clothes and bedding.


CONCLUSIONS
Patients with atopic dermatitis showed a higher prevalence of mites on their skin than did healthy individuals, which could be involved in allergic sensitization and disease exacerbation.
Teplitsky
Valery
V
Allergy and Immunology Subunit, Pulmonary Institute, Rabin Medical Center, Petah Tiqwa, Israel.
Mumcuoglu
Kosta Y
KY
Babai
Ilan
I
Dalal
Ilan
I
Cohen
Rifka
R
Tanay
Amir
A
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000818:Animals; D039741:Antigens, Dermatophagoides / Q000276:immunology*; D001512:Bedding and Linens; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003020:Clothing; D003876:Dermatitis, Atopic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000276:immunology*; D003888:Desensitization, Immunologic / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D011336:Probability; D039981:Pyroglyphidae / Q000276:immunology*; D012016:Reference Values; D012307:Risk Factors; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012882:Skin Tests / Q000379:methods
D039741:Antigens, Dermatophagoides