Obesity, inflammation, and asthma severity in childhood: data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2001-2004.

BACKGROUND: The prevalences of asthma and obesity in children have increased significantly during the past 2 decades. The basis for the relationship between pediatric asthma and obesity is not well established. OBJECTIVES: To explore the association between obesity and asthma severity in children and adolescents and to test whether obesity-induced inflammation, as characterized by serum C-reactive protein (CRP), is associated with increased severity of asthma. METHODS: Retrospective cohort analysis of interview, physical examination, and laboratory test data from participants younger than 20 years in 2 rounds of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2001-2002 and 2003-2004). We also performed generalized ordered logistic regression to evaluate the effect of body mass index (BMI) z score and CRP level on asthma severity, controlling for the impact of age, sex, race, income, insurance, and tobacco smoke exposure. RESULTS: Of the 77 million individuals younger than 20 years represented by this weighted sample, 19% met the study-defined criteria for asthma; most cases were defined as mild (11%) or moderate (6%); 2% had severe asthma. In multivariable models, elevated BMI z scores (odds ratio, 1.12; 95% confidence interval, 1.05-1.21) were associated with worse asthma severity. Elevated CRP level was associated with obesity (P < .001) and asthma severity (odds ratio, 1.33; 95% confidence interval, 1.16-1.52). CONCLUSIONS: Higher BMI z scores and elevated serum CRP levels are associated with increased asthma severity. These findings highlight the importance of controlling for inflammation when considering the role of obesity and provide support for the hypothesis that obesity-induced inflammation may contribute to greater asthma severity.

Safety of open food challenges in the office setting.

BACKGROUND: Open food challenges are a practical alternative to double-blind, placebo-controlled food challenges in confirming clinical sensitivity or tolerance to a food, and the risks associated with open challenges are unknown. OBJECTIVE: To examine the safety of open food challenges administered in an office setting. METHODS: A retrospective medical record review of open food challenges, administered in a university-based pediatric allergy-immunology clinic during a 3-year period, was performed. RESULTS: A total of 109 patients (69% male) underwent 150 open food challenges, most of which were to milk (n = 39), peanut (n = 37), and egg (n = 29). There were 40 positive challenges (27% of all challenges) in 33 patients. Reactions were mild to moderate in 92% of positive challenges. Cutaneous reactions occurred in 68% of positive challenges, followed by gastrointestinal tract reactions (45%) and upper respiratory tract reactions (38%), excluding laryngeal symptoms. No patient had cardiovascular involvement. Food specific IgE values did not correlate with reaction severity. Interventions included observation or antihistamine only in 92% of positive challenges. No patient received epinephrine or required hospitalization. For negative challenges to milk, peanut, and egg, median prechallenge food specific IgE approached previously published negative predictive values for these foods. Negative challenges in patients allowed the introduction of 19 different foods into the diet of 88 patients. CONCLUSION: Open food challenges are a safe procedure in the office setting for patients selected based on history and food specific IgE approaching negative predictive values.

Clinical characteristics of peanut-allergic children: recent changes.

OBJECTIVE: The goal was to determine whether patients seen in a referral clinic are experiencing initial allergic reactions to peanuts earlier, compared with a similar population profiled at a different medical center 10 years ago, and to investigate other changes in clinical characteristics of the patients between the 2 groups. METHODS: We reviewed the medical charts of peanut-allergic patients seen in the Duke University pediatric allergy and immunology clinic between July 2000 and April 2006. RESULTS: The median ages of first peanut exposure and reaction were 14 and 18 months, respectively; the respective ages in a similar population profiled between 1995 and 1997 were 22 and 24 months. Within our patient group, those born before 2000 were first exposed to peanuts at a median age of 19 months and reacted at a median age of 21 months, compared with first exposure at 12 months and first reaction at 14 months for those born in or after 2000. Most patients (68%) demonstrated sensitization or clinical allergy to other foods (53% to eggs, 26% to cow's milk, 20% to tree nuts, 11% to fish, 9% to shellfish, 7% to soy, 6% to wheat, and 6% to sesame seeds). CONCLUSIONS: In the past decade, the ages of first peanut exposure and reaction have declined among peanut-allergic children seen in a referral clinic. Egg allergy is very common in peanut-allergic patients, and sesame seeds should perhaps be considered one of the major food allergens. The decline in the age of first peanut reaction seems to be attributable to earlier exposure.

Burkholderia glumae infection in an infant with chronic granulomatous disease.

An 8-month-old boy developed a necrotic lung mass from which Burkholderia glumae was recovered, leading to the diagnosis of chronic granulomatous disease (CGD). While other Burkholderia species have been identified as important pathogens in persons with CGD, B. glumae has not been previously reported to cause human infection.

Disseminated Candida tropicalis in a patient with chronic mucocutaneous candidiasis.

Chronic mucocutaneous candidiasis is a heterogeneous group of immunodeficiencies associated with persistent candidal infections. Patients with chronic mucocutaneous candidiasis are rarely associated with systemic infections caused by other fungi, but almost never by Candida. The authors report a case of a 16-year-old with chronic mucocutaneous candidiasis who developed a fungemia with Candida tropicalis.