According to a new study published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, adults planning to acquire a cat should think again, especially if they have a history of allergic diseases. This is because exposure to cats in adulthood almost doubles the risk of cat sensitization.
In the present study, 6292 adults, between the ages of 22 and 44, from European centers, were exposed to cats. 4468 of these individuals had not been exposed to cat’s dander at the beginning of the study. The subjects were evaluated twice during the course of the study at an interval of nine years. While 473 individuals had a cat at the onset of the study, 651 acquired one during the course of the study. The researchers, led by Dr. Mario Olivieri, from the University Hospital, Verona, Italy, found that 3.7% of the participants who were not exposed to cat’s dander, became sensitized to the animal, at the end of the study. Compared to this, 5% of the individuals who acquired a cat during the course of the study, became sensitized to it. Moreover, it was noticed that four out of ten participants, who became sensitized to cats, also suffered from allergic symptoms around other animals. The rate of sensitization was more in participants, who allowed the animal inside their bedrooms.
Sensitization to cat was measured by the levels of a specific serum IgE. Cat sensitization is said to occur when the specific IgE is more than 0.35 kU/L. Sensitization means that a person is prone to develop full blown allergy when exposed again to a particular allergen.
The researchers noticed that those individuals who had a prior history of asthma or any other type of allergy were more likely to develop an allergic reaction when exposed to a cat. An interesting finding of the study was that exposure to cat during childhood offered a protective action against development of sensitization. Adults acquiring a cat have been advised to keep it out of the bedroom, to wash the cat weekly and to install HEPA filters in the bedroom to remove the dander.
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