Early Infections Could Lead to Asthma

Ivanhoe Newswire
Wednesday, April 25, 2007; 12:00 AM

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Preventing viral infections in infants considered at high risk for allergies might help ward off asthma as children get older.

A new report out of Australia suggests allergies and viral infections can team up to increase the risk of wheeze in these kids. Wheezing often leads to an asthma diagnosis.

The research involved about 200 children who were followed from birth to age 5. Investigators kept track of viral infections, wheezing episodes and asthma. The children were reassessed for allergies when they were six months old, two years old, and five years old.

By the time they were 5, about 28 percent of the children were diagnosed with wheeze, and these children were more likely to have experienced allergic sensitization at age 2 or earlier. Viral infections didnt appear to increase the risk for wheeze in children without allergies, or those who developed allergies after age 2.

The authors write, Protection of high-risk children against the effects of severe respiratory infections during infancy may represent an effective strategy for primary asthma prevention. The potential benefits of these strategies merit more careful evaluation in this age group.

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SOURCE: Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, published online April 19, 2007