The frequency of allergens implicated in bronchial asthma in different areas of Romania.

The study carried out on 582 asthma patients and 164 healthy controls, ranging in age from 5 to 60 years, dwelling in four different towns ( Sibiu , Mediaş, Baia Mare, Sighetul Marma tiei ) showed that the most frequently involved antigen in allergic bronchial asthma was house dust (50.3 to 86%), followed by Dermatophagoides pteronissinus and atmospheric fungi, and the most frequently encountered associations were likewise between these allergens, hence the orientation towards a specific hyposensitizing therapy. In these localities with a rich gramineous vegetation there was a high per cent of sensitization to the polen of these plants. Sensitization to woollen hairs has been reported in a high percent in the region of Maramure ş and is linked to its ethnical characteristics. In many cases the patients also exhibited hypersensitiveness to bacteria, associated with environmental allergens, the vicious circle realized by an allergic-infectious mechanism being known. The conclusions of the study on the etiology of bronchial asthma in these geographical areas will be used as a basis for the treatment and its orientation.