Introduction:
Adverse respiratory effects of exposure to mould and dampness at home have been documented
in a number of mainly cross-sectional studies. The aim was to investigate the effect
of concurrent versus long-term exposure to mould and/or dampness on respiratory allergies,
considering several follow-ups from birth until adolescence.
Methods:
The study comprised 14384 subjects from 7 European birth cohorts within the MeDALL
project. Exposure to mould and dampness as well as asthma (2 out of 3: physician-diagnosis
ever, wheezing and/or asthma medication in the past 12 months) and symptoms of rhinoconjunctivitis
(runny or blocked nose without a cold in the past 12 months and itchy, watery eyes)
were assessed by questionnaires. For 6 birth cohorts, aeroallergen sensitization was
measured, which was further used to define allergic asthma and rhinoconjunctivitis.
The longitudinal relationship between early (birth-1year) and concurrent (at 8 – 10years
and 14 – 16years) exposure to mould/dampness with disease prevalence was modelled
study specific using general estimation equation (GEE) models and combined in a random-effects
meta-analysis. Additionally, discrete time hazard (DTH) models were used to analyse
associations with incidence.
Results:
Early exposure to mould and/or dampness was borderline significantly associated with
the prevalence of asthma between 4 and 16 years of age in GEE analyses (OR = 1.14,
95%-CI =(0.99 – 1.31)). Concurrent, but not early exposure to mould and/or dampness
at home increased the risk for allergic asthma (1.24 (1.02 – 1.51)). There was no
association of early or concurrent exposure to dampness/mould with rhinoconjunctivitis
and aeroallergen sensitization. Results of DTH models were similar.
Conclusions:
This study suggests that exposure to dampness/mould increases the risk of presence
and onset of (allergic) asthma while there were no effects on rhinoconjunctivitis
or aeroallergen sensitization from early childhood until adolescence.
