The prevalence of cutaneous hypersensitivity and its relationship to Pseudomonas colonization and outcome in cystic fibrosis.

Forty-seven patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) studied in 1977 have been followed up and reviewed, with respect to the development of immediate cutaneous hypersensitivity to Aspergillus fumigatus and other allergens, and the date of Pseudomonas aeruginosa colonization. The prevalence of cutaneous hypersensitivity to inhaled allergens in CF increases with longer allergen exposure, to the extent that the CF patients develop a prevalence of atopy greater than normal controls. Allergen-sensitive patients were found to develop Pseudomonas colonization later, but to have a shorter survival subsequently; there was no relationship between skin tests and overall survival.