Lung mechanics and respiratory morbidities in school-age children born moderate-to-late preterm.

BACKGROUND: Late and moderate prematurity may have an impact on pulmonary function during childhood. The present study aimed to investigate lung mechanics in school-age children born moderate-to-late preterm (MLPT). METHODS: Children aged 5-10 years were enrolled in this case-control study. Lung function and bronchodilator response were assessed by impulse oscillometry (IOS) at two hospital-based specialized clinics. A structured questionnaire was employed to assess respiratory morbidities. RESULTS: A total of 123 children was divided into two groups: case (MLPT) n = 52 and control (children born at term) n = 71. The results showed no difference between groups in mean baseline IOS variables: R5 0.80 ± 0.20 vs 0.82 ± 0.22 kPa/L/s, p = 0.594, R20 0.54 ± 0.13 vs 0.55 ± 0.13 kPa/L/s, p = 0.732, R5-R20 0.26 ± 0.12 vs 0.27 ± 0.15 kPa/L/s, p = 0.615, X5 -0.29 ± 0.01 vs -0.29 ± 0.1 kPa/L/s, p = 0.990, Fres 21.1 ± 3.3 vs 21.7 ± 3.1 L/s, p = 0.380, and AX 2.7 ± 3.36 vs 2.5 ± 1.31 kPa/L/s, p = 0.626. Bronchodilator response and the occurrence of respiratory morbidities after birth were also similar between groups. CONCLUSIONS: This study found lung mechanics parameters to be similar in school-age children born MLPT and those born at term, suggesting that pulmonary plasticity continues to occur in children up to school age. IMPACT: Late and moderate prematurity is associated with an increased risk of reduced pulmonary function during childhood. Follow-up reports in adolescents and adults born MLPT are scarce but have indicated pulmonary plasticity with normalization of airway function. Our results show that the lung function in school-age children born MLPT is similar to that of children born at term.

Cytokine production in allergic and Trichuris trichiura-infected children from an urban region of the Brazilian northeast.

The relationship between the cellular immune response during Trichuris trichiura infection and asthma has not yet been established. In this study, the cytokines interleukin (IL)-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, TNF-α, IFN-γ and IL-17A were evaluated in asthmatic children harboring T. trichiura. For this assessment, asthmatic and non-asthmatic children (ISAAC questionnaire) were submitted to parasitological tests and blood samples were cultured (mitogen stimulation) for cytokine measurements in the supernatant. Asthma frequencies were similar in infected and uninfected children, but IL-4, IL-6, TNF-α and IL-10 levels were high in the infected asthmatic children. Additionally, infected non-asthmatic children exhibited high levels of these cytokines in relation to uninfected non-asthmatic children; however, cytokine levels were lower when compared with infected and asthmatic children. Therefore, T. trichiura infection positively modulated the pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines in asthmatic children, but a background of asthma seemed to narrow the production of cytokines induced by this helminth.

Mothers impose physical activity restrictions on their asthmatic children and adolescents: an analytical cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Physical activities are important for children and adolescents, especially asthmatics. A significant proportion is considered less active than their non-asthmatic peers and mother's beliefs about asthma are thought to be a determinant factor.The research objectives were to investigate whether mothers try to impose limitations on the physical activity (PA) of their asthmatic children/adolescents; identify associated factors; and explore if this attitude has any impact on children's PA levels. METHODS: In this cross sectional investigation, we studied 115 asthmatics aged between 9 and 19 years and their mothers. Asthma severity, PA level and exercise induced bronchospasm (EIB) were evaluated. Mothers were questioned on their beliefs about physical activity in non-asthmatic and asthmatic children, if they imposed restrictions on their children's physical activity, on EIB perception and personal levels of anxiety and depression. RESULTS: Ninety six percent of the mothers answered that PA are important for children and adolescents. Despite this, 37% of them admitted imposing restrictions to their children's PA. This attitude was associated with mother's negative opinions about asthmatics doing PA, perception of children's dyspnea after running on a treadmill, mother's anxiety level and children's asthma severity. The mother's restrictive attitudes were not associated with children's lower PA levels. CONCLUSION: A high proportion of the mothers said that they restrained their asthmatic children from engaging in physical activity. This fact should be recognized by health professionals and discussed with parents and caregivers as these negative beliefs may lead to conflicts and prejudiced attitudes that could discourage children's involvement in physical activities and sports.

Adverse reactions to foods and food allergy: development and reproducibility of a questionnaire for clinical diagnosis.

Objective. To develop a questionnaire as a screening tool for adverse reactions to foods in children and to assess the technical reproducibility by test-retest. Methods. Reproducibility of the questionnaire was performed by the literature review, preparing the preliminary questionnaire, peer review, pretest, and retest analysis. The study of the test-retest reproducibility was cross-sectional and descriptive. Kappa coefficient was used to study the reproducibility of the questionnaire. The sample consisted of 125 2-4 year-old children from 15 daycare centers in Recife, Brazil, and interviews with parents or caregivers were used to collect data. Results. From the total children, sixty-three were boys (50.4%), forty-six were two years old (36.8%), forty-seven were three years old (37.6%), and thirty-two were four years old (25.6%). Forty caregivers reported that their child had health problems with food. Most frequently reported offending foods were milk, peanuts, shrimp, and chocolate. Nine questions showed a good Kappa index (≥0,6). Conclusions. The questionnaire used needs to be resized and reshaped on the basis of the issues with good internal consistency and reproducibility. The use of a validated and reproducible questionnaire in the children represents an important contribution towards assessing an eventual rise in overt food allergy.

Giardia lamblia e alergia respiratória: estudo em uma amostra de crianças de área urbana com frequência elevada da protozoose / Giardia lamblia and respiratory allergies: a study of children from an urban area with a high incidence of protozoan infections

OBJETIVO: Uma elevada incidência de enteroparasitoses é encontrada em regiões urbanas do nordeste brasileiro. As infecções por Giardia lamblia têm sido relacionadas com aumento da prevalência de alergias cutâneas e gastrointestinais. Contudo, ainda existe pouca informação sobre a associação entre a giardíase e doenças alérgicas das vias aéreas. Diante disso, o presente estudo se propôs a verificar a relação entre a infecção por G. lamblia em crianças de área urbana e reatividade alérgica respiratória. MÉTODOS: O estudo incluiu 110 pacientes, de ambos os sexos e idades, entre 5 e 15 anos. Os pacientes foram submetidos a questionários de avaliação dos sintomas clínicos, testes cutâneos de leitura imediata e exames coproparasitológicos e sorológicos. RESULTADOS: Foi verificada uma frequência elevada de crianças infectadas por G. lamblia (45%, 50/110). A infecção pelo protozoário não foi associada com maior risco de alergias respiratórias (p = 0,075), elevação de IgE total (p = 0,701), IgE específica (p = 0,250) ou teste cutâneo positivo para diferentes alérgenos ambientais (p = 0,239). CONCLUSÃO: O estudo demonstrou que a presença dos sintomas de asma, atopia cutânea e marcadores sorológicos não foram associados com a presença de infecção pela G. lamblia nessa amostra de crianças.

OBJECTIVES: There is a high incidence of intestinal parasite infection in urban areas in the Northeast of Brazil. Giardia lamblia infections have been associated with increased prevalence of cutaneous allergies and gastrointestinal disorders. However, little is known about the relationship between giardiasis and allergic diseases of the airways. The present study aimed to investigate the possible association between respiratory allergic diseases and infections by G. lamblia in children from urban areas. METHODS: This study recruited 110 patients of both sexes aged 5-15 years. Patients were administered a questionnaire evaluating clinical symptoms and were given skin tests, parasite tests and serum tests. RESULTS: A high incidence of G. lamblia was observed (45%, 50/110). Infections by this protozoan were not associated with increased risk of respiratory allergy (p = 0.075), high total IgE levels (p = 0.701), positive specific IgE tests (p = 0.250), or positive skin tests for a range of environmental allergens (p = 0.239). CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated that symptoms of asthma, skin allergy and serum markers were not associated with G. lamblia infections in this sample of children from urban areas.

Associação dos polimorfismos nos genes da IL-4, IL-5, IL-13 e IL-10 e a asma infantil: uma revisão sistemática / Association of polymorphisms in IL-4, IL-5, IL-13 or IL-10 genes and childhood asthma: a systematic review

Objetivo: A reação inflamatória observada na asma é decorrente da ativação de linfócitos Th2, ação das citocinas IL-4, IL-5, IL-9 e IL-13 e produção de IgE. Estima-se que diferentes genes e seus polimorfismos influenciam o desenvolvimento da doença. O presente estudo apresenta os resultados de artigos, selecionados sistematicamente, sobre a associação de polimorfismos nos genes da IL-4, IL-5, IL-13 e IL-10 e o fenótipo de asma, gravidade da doença e atopia em crianças. Fontes dos dados: Foi realizada uma pesquisa por artigos nos principais bancos científicos e foram selecionados 15 trabalhos, publicados entre 1999 e 2008. Síntese dos dados: Em relação à associação entre os polimorfismos, em diferentes regiões do gene e o diagnóstico clínico de asma, foi verificado que para IL-4, 50% (4/8) dos artigos observaram associação significativa e para IL-13, 80% (4/5). Contudo, os estudos para os genes da IL-5 e IL-10 não encontraram associação positiva. Para a variável níveis de gravidade e/ou presença de atopia, 67% (4/6) e 100% (5/5) dos estudos encontraram associação nos genes da IL-4 e da IL-13, respectivamente. Para os genes da IL-5 e IL-10 foi observada associação significativa, porém, não é possível inferir conclusões, devido o pequeno número de artigos disponíveis. Conclusões: Os resultados desta revisão sistemática ressaltam a participação de polimorfismos nos genes da IL-4 e IL-13 na indução de níveis de asma, gravidade dos sintomas e/ou atopia, além de enfatizar a necessidade de mais estudos sobre a participação do polimorfismo da IL-5 e IL-10 com os diferentes níveis de asma.

Objective: The inflammatory reaction observed in asthma is due to the activation of Th2 lymphocytes, the action of cytokines IL-4, IL-5, IL-9 and IL-13 and the production of IgE. It is estimated that different genes and their polymorphisms influence the development of the disease. This study presents the results of systematically selected articles about the association of polymorphisms in genes of cytokines IL-4, IL-5, IL-13, IL-10 and asthma phenotype, the disease severity and atopy in children. Data source: 15 scientific articles published between 1999 and 2008 were selected from major databases. Data synthesis: Regarding the association between polymorphisms in different gene regions and the clinical diagnosis of asthma, 50% (4/8) of the articles about IL-4 stated the existence of a significant association and 80% (4/ 5) of those that studied IL-13 presented the same conclusion. However, in studies about genes of IL-5 and IL-10 no positive associations were found. For the variable levels of severity and/or the existence of atopy, 67% (4/6) and 100% (5/5) of the studies showed an association with genes of IL-4 and IL-13, respectively. Regarding genes of IL-5 and IL-10, a significant association was observed, but it was not possible to point out conclusions, due to the poor number of articles available. Conclusions: The results of this systematic review highlight the role of polymorphisms in genes of IL-4 and IL-13 in the induction of asthma phenotypes, severity of symptoms and/or atopy. Also, this review emphasizes the need for further studies about the participation of polymorphisms of IL-5 and IL-10 in the different asthma phenotypes.

Giardia lamblia and respiratory allergies: a study of children from an urban area with a high incidence of protozoan infections.

OBJECTIVES: There is a high incidence of intestinal parasite infection in urban areas in the Northeast of Brazil. Giardia lamblia infections have been associated with increased prevalence of cutaneous allergies and gastrointestinal disorders. However, little is known about the relationship between giardiasis and allergic diseases of the airways. The present study aimed to investigate the possible association between respiratory allergic diseases and infections by Giardia lamblia in children from urban areas. METHODS: This study recruited 110 patients of both sexes aged 5-15 years. Patients were administered a questionnaire evaluating clinical symptoms and were given skin tests, parasite tests and serum tests. RESULTS: A high incidence of Giardia lamblia was observed (45%, 50/110). Infections by this protozoan were not associated with increased risk of respiratory allergy (p = 0.075), high total IgE levels (p = 0.701), positive specific IgE tests (p = 0.250), or positive skin tests for a range of environmental allergens (p = 0.239). CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated that symptoms of asthma, skin allergy and serum markers were not associated with Giardia lamblia infections in this sample of children from urban areas.

Produção de IL-10 em resposta a aeroalérgenos em crianças e adolescentes de zona urbana com geohelmintíases / IL-10 production in response to aeroallergens by children and teenage from urban areas with geohelminthiasis

Objetivos: A IL-10 pode imunomodular as respostas alérgicas no hospedeiro. A respeito dos geohelmintos, trabalhos divergem quanto à alteração do quadro clínico e/ou testes cutâneos de hipersensibilidade. Pouco é conhecido sobre a produção de IL-10 frente a aeroalérgenos durante as geohelmintíases. Neste estudo, verificamos a produção de IL-10 por células mononucleares de sangue periférico de pacientes com ou sem geohelmíntiases, de zona urbana, em resposta ao Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus ou Blomia tropicalis. Métodos: Estudo experimental, com 21 pacientes de zona urbana, em que foram realizadas 84 determinações de IL-10. Após exames coprológicos, em triplicata, dois grupos foram formados, crianças enteroparasitadas e não-parasitadas. Amostras de sangue foram coleta das para purificação de células mononucleares e cultivo com antígenos de Ascaris sp (Asc), mitógeno concanavalina A (Con A), O. pteronyssinus (Dep) e B. tropicalis (Bt). A IL-10 do sobrenadante celular foi dosada (ELISA). Resultados: Idade dos pacientes variou de 9-12 anos e sem diferença quanto ao sexo. Nos indivíduos parasitados a carga parasitária foi baixa. Frente ao Asc, Con A ou Dep não houve diferença na síntese de IL-10 pelas células do grupo parasitado e não parasitado. Contudo, uma produção significativamente maior de IL-10, frente ao estímulo com Bt, nos não-parasitados foi observada. Conclusões: Pacientes de zona urbana parasitados produzem menos IL-10 frente à B. tropicalis, alérgeno mais prevalente em Recife, podendo levar a predisposição às manifestações alérgicas. Estes dados corroboram a hipótese que baixa carga parasitária de geohelmintos, principalmente Ascaris lumbricoides, pode predispor à asma/sibilância.

Objectives: IL-10 can immunomodulate allergic reactions in the host. Concerning of the geohelminths, the studies diverge about the alteration of clinical allergic disease and/or skin prick test reactivity. IL-10 production in response to aeroallergens during the geohelminths infection is poorly known. In this study, we verified the IL-10 syntheses by peripheral blood mononuclear cells from low parasitic load infected or non-infected patients coming from urban areas, when stimulated with Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (Dep) or Blomia tropicalis (Bt). Methods: Experimental analysis of 21 patients from urban areas, which was performed 84 IL-10 determinations. After the parasitological exams (Hofmann/Kato-Katz), in triplicate, two groups were obtained, geohelminths infected and non-infected children. Blood sample were harvested for purification of mononuclear cells and culture with Ascaris sp antigen (Asc), concanavalina A mitogen (Con A), Dep and Bt. IL-10 content in cellular supernatant was measured (ELISA). Results: Patients age was among 9-12 years old and without difference in gender. In parasite infected individual the parasite load was low. In response to Asc, Con A or Dep there was not difference in the IL-10 synthesis. However, in response to Bt stimulus, high production of IL-10 by non-parasite infected group was observed. Conclusions: Parasite infected patients from urban areas product less IL-10 to Bt, allergen more prevalent in Recife, could lead to predisposition to allergic manifestation. These finding corroborate the hypotheses that low parasite load of geohelminths, especially Ascaris lumbricoides, can predispose to asth ma/wheezing.