Variations in exhaled nitric oxide in children with asthma during a 1-week stay in a mountain village sanatorium.

Knowing about spontaneous variations in the fractional concentration of exhaled nitric oxide (FE(NO)) could improve monitoring of airway inflammation in asthmatic children. We aimed to assess FE(NO) variations (expiratory flow 50 mL/sec) in subjects maintained in similar environmental conditions. We tested spirometry and FE(NO) in symptom-free asthmatic children (9 corticosteroid-naive, 8 corticosteroid-treated) during a 1-week stay in a countryside sanatorium and in their healthy relatives (n = 12) staying in the immediate neighborhood on summer holiday (total 29 children, M/F:14/15, 5.

Epidemiology of atopy patch tests with food and inhalant allergens in an unselected population of children.

Atopy patch test (APT) has been used as a diagnostic tool in patients with suspected food or inhalant allergy. This study assessed the prevalence of positive APT with food or inhalant allergens in an unselected population of schoolchildren. We also evaluated the link between positive APT reactions and skin-prick tests (SPT) for food and inhalant allergens, circulating eosinophils and histamine skin reactivity.