title: Association between exposure to antimicrobial household products and allergic symptoms.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Antimicrobial chemicals are used in a variety of household and personal care products. Exposure to antimicrobial household products has been hypothesized to lead to allergic diseases in children.
  
  
  METHODS
  We investigated antimicrobial household product exposure and allergic symptoms in Korean children. An antimicrobial exposure (AE) score was derived. To examine the symptoms of allergic diseases (current wheeze, current rhinitis, and current eczema) in the past 12 months, we used a questionnaire based on the core module of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Children. Complete data for the analysis were available for 25,805 of the 35,590 (72.5%) children.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The prevalence of current allergic diseases was as follows: wheeze, 5.6%; allergic rhinitis, 32.6%; and eczema, 17.7%. The mean (standard deviation) AE score was 14.3 (9.3) (range: 0-40). Compared with subjects with a low AE score (reference), subjects with a high AE score (fourth quartile) were more likely to have symptoms of wheezing and allergic rhinitis (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] for wheezing 1.24, 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.05-1.45, p for trend=0.24; aOR for allergic rhinitis 1.30, 95% CI, 1.20-1.40, p<0.01).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings suggest that frequent use of antimicrobial household products was associated with current wheeze and current allergic rhinitis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health Research, Seoul Medical Center, Seoul, Korea ; Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Soyoung
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine, Dankook University College of Medicine, Cheonan, Korea.
authors.forename: Ho-Jang
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Kwon
authors.affiliation: Department of Occupational & Environmental Medicine, Gachon University Gil Medical Center, Incheon, Korea.
authors.forename: Won-Jun
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health Research, Seoul Medical Center, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Wan Ryung
authors.initials: WR
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health Research, Seoul Medical Center, Seoul, Korea ; Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Jeonghoon
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health Research, Seoul Medical Center, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: KyooSang
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kim
keywords: Allergic diseases; Allergic rhinitis; Antimicrobial; Asthma; Children; Triclosan