Study of airborne insect allergen in asthmatic patients

Objective: To study the variety of airborne allergenic insects and its sensibility in asthmatic patients. Methods: 300 asthmatic patients and 100 normal controls underwent skin prick test (SPT) with 13 kinds of superior airborne insect vaccine, and sera sIgE of those whose SPT results were positive were tested by BSA-ELISA. Results: The total positive rate of SPT with 13 kinds of insect vaccine in asthmatic patients was 58%, and it was significantly higher than that of normal control (P<0.01). The results of SPT with Stayridae, Heliothis armigera, Psilgramma menephorn and other 7 kinds of insects were more than 30% in asthmatic patients which meant these 10 kinds of insects were main allergenic insects to asthmatic patients. The positive rate of sIgE in asthmatic patients was more than 85%, while the normal control was only 6.0%. There was significant difference between two groups (P<0.01). Conclusion: Stayridae, Hellothis annigera, Psilgramma menephorn and other 7 kinds of insects were main allergenic insects to asthmatic patients and perhaps they were the main allergens to the onset of asthma at the end summer or the early autumn.