GA2LEN skin test study I: GA²LEN harmonization of skin prick testing: novel sensitization patterns for inhalant allergens in Europe

Background:  Skin prick testing is the standard for diagnosing IgE‐mediated allergies. However, different allergen extracts and different testing procedures have been applied by European allergy centres. Thus, it has been difficult to compare results from different centres or studies across Europe. It was, therefore, crucial to standardize and harmonize procedures in allergy diagnosis and treatment within Europe.

[1]  B. Rudolf,et al.  World Map of the Köppen-Geiger climate classification updated , 2006 .

[2]  G. Canonica,et al.  Antiallergic drugs and the immune response , 1989, Allergy.

[3]  F Neukirch,et al.  The European Community Respiratory Health Survey: what are the main results so far? European Community Respiratory Health Survey II. , 2001, The European respiratory journal.

[4]  Ranz,et al.  World Map of the Köppen-Geiger climate classification updated — Source link , 2006 .

[5]  J. Crane,et al.  A comparison of two skin test methodologies and allergens from two different manufacturers. , 2002, Annals of allergy, asthma & immunology : official publication of the American College of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology.

[6]  J. Bousquet,et al.  Prick tests to aeroallergens: is it possible simply to wipe the device between tests? , 2002, Allergy.

[7]  B. Wüthrich.  [Epidemiology of allergies in Switzerland]. , 2001, Therapeutische Umschau. Revue thérapeutique.

[8]  Richard Beasley,et al.  Worldwide variation in prevalence of symptoms of asthma, allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, and atopic eczema: ISAAC , 1998, The Lancet.

[9]  Bernstein Il,et al.  Practice parameters for allergy diagnostic testing. Joint Task Force on Practice Parameters for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Asthma. The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology and the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. , 1995 .

[10]  D. Jarvis,et al.  The European Community Respiratory Health Survey II , 1994, European Respiratory Journal.

[11]  R. Valenta,et al.  The allergen profile of ash (Fraxinus excelsior) pollen: cross‐reactivity with allergens from various plant species , 2002, Clinical and experimental allergy : journal of the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

[12]  A. Dirksen,et al.  929 Increasing prevalence of skin test positive allergic rhinitis in Danish adults: Two cross sectional surveys 8 years apart , 2000 .

[13]  J. Bousquet,et al.  Standard skin prick testing and sensitization to inhalant allergens across Europe – a survey from the GA2LEN network * , 2005, Allergy.

[14]  M. Burr,et al.  Childhood asthma in four countries: a comparative survey. , 1994, International journal of epidemiology.

[15]  A. Dirksen,et al.  The prevalence of skin‐test‐positive allergic rhinitis in Danish adults: two cross‐sectional surveys 8 years apart.The Copenhagen Allergy Study , 2000, Allergy.

[16]  J. Bousquet,et al.  Association between asthma and rhinitis according to atopic sensitization in a population-based study. , 2004, The Journal of allergy and clinical immunology.

[17]  D. Strachan,et al.  International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC): rationale and methods. , 1995, The European respiratory journal.

[18]  D. Jarvis,et al.  The European Community Respiratory Health Survey II , 2002, European Respiratory Journal.

[19]  S. H. Arshad,et al.  Sensitization to common allergens and its association with allergic disorders at age 4 years: a whole population birth cohort study. , 2001, Pediatrics.

[20]  P. Elsner,et al.  The European Surveillance System of Contact Allergies (ESSCA): results of patch testing the standard series, 2004 , 2008, Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology : JEADV.

[21]  Christian Fritzsch,et al.  Increasing prevalence of hay fever and atopy among children in Leipzig, East Germany , 1998, The Lancet.

[22]  D. Gíslason,et al.  Respiratory symptoms and nocturnal gastroesophageal reflux: a population-based study of young adults in three European countries. , 2002, Chest.

[23]  D. Jarvis,et al.  The European Community Respiratory Health Survey. , 1994, The European respiratory journal.

[24]  R. G. Das,et al.  EU Forum: The CREATE Project: development of certified reference materials for allergenic products and validation of methods for their quantification , 2008, Allergy.

[25]  M. Barreto,et al.  Skin reactivity to histamine and to allergens in unselected 9‐year‐old children living in Poland and Italy , 2003, Pediatric allergy and immunology : official publication of the European Society of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology.

[26]  E. Vartiainen,et al.  Allergic diseases, skin prick test responses, and IgE levels in North Karelia, Finland, and the Republic of Karelia, Russia. , 2002, The Journal of allergy and clinical immunology.

[27]  W. Hemmer,et al.  Ash (Fraxinus excelsior)‐pollen allergy in central Europe:specific role of pollen panallergens and the major allergen of ash pollen, Fra e 1 , 2000, Allergy.

[28]  Bénédicte Leynaert,et al.  Sensitisation to airborne moulds and severity of asthma: cross sectional study from European Community respiratory health survey , 2002, BMJ : British Medical Journal.

[29]  T. Zuberbier,et al.  Prevalence of adverse reactions to food in Germany – a population study , 2004, Allergy.

[30]  S. Dreborg.  The skin prick test in the diagnosis of atopic allergy. , 1989, Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.

[31]  I. Bernstein,et al.  Practice parameters for allergy diagnostic testing. Joint Task Force on Practice Parameters for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Asthma. The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology and the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. , 1995, Annals of allergy, asthma & immunology : official publication of the American College of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology.

[32]  C. Bindslev‐Jensen,et al.  Type I sensitization in adolescents: prevalence and association with atopic dermatitis. The Odense Adolescence Cohort Study on Atopic Diseases and Dermatitis (TOACS). , 2003, Acta dermato-venereologica.

[33]  J. Bousquet,et al.  Allergy in the Mediterranean area III: cross reactivity among Oleaceae pollens , 1985, Clinical allergy.

[34]  R. Mabry,et al.  Skin Testing for Inhalant Allergy 2003: Current Strategies , 2003, Otolaryngology--head and neck surgery : official journal of American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery.

[35]  B. Brunekreef,et al.  Early, current and past pet ownership: associations with sensitization, bronchial responsiveness and allergic symptoms in school children , 2002, Clinical and experimental allergy : journal of the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

[36]  B. Sibbald,et al.  Is the prevalence of atopy increasing? , 1990, The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners.

[37]  B. Brunekreef,et al.  The relationship between exhaled nitric oxide and allergic sensitization in a random sample of school children , 2003, Clinical and experimental allergy : journal of the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

[38]  T. Haahtela,et al.  Skin Prick Test Reactivity to Common Allergens in Finnish Adolescents , 1980, Allergy.

[39]  J. Bousquet,et al.  Skin tests used in type I allergy testing Position paper. Sub-Committee on Skin Tests of the European Academy of Allergology and Clinical Immunology. , 1989, Allergy.