Ragweed Allergy in Patients with Respiratory Allergic Diseases: Prevalence and Phenotypin

Abstract

ollen is one of the main reasons to cause seasonal allergic respiratory diseases and it is influenced by multiple risk factors. It is recognized that more than 150 pollen allergens play a significant role in an allergic process originating from weeds, grasses and trees. Our study was conducted on 220 adult patients attending the allergy clinic at Ain Shams University hospitals to determine prevalence of ragweed allergy among Egyptian patients with respiratory allergy (asthma and/or allergic rhinitis) and to determine phenotyping of ragweed allergy. The prevalence of patients with ragweed sensitization was higher among male group compared to female group. Moreover, the percentage of ragweed patients living in rural areas was higher than that in urban areas. 16.2 % of our ragweed patients complained of oral allergy syndrome symptoms which depend on the cross-reactivity between pollen allergens and food proteins. 90.5% of patients with ragweed had AR alone, 17.6% had BA alone and 8.1% of patients with AR and ragweed sensitization had associated BA. The most prevalent inhalants in patients with ragweed sensitization were rabbit and pigeon feather, while the most prevalent food was banana.