No abstract

Allergic rhinitis is common in Poland as it affects nearly 25% of the population and it is a major social problem. Standards of early detection and prevention of allergic rhinitis should be introduced.

BackgroundLinks between multimorbidity of allergic diseases and allergen sensitization are still under debate, especially in adults. This study aimed to establish a relationship between polysensitization and allergic multimorbidity in children and adults and the allergens involved in multimorbidity.Material and methodA cross-sectional multicentre study enrolled children aged 6–7 and 13–14 years and adults aged 20–44 years from a Polish national cohort. The diagnosis of allergic diseases was made by a physician. Skin prick tests to 13 allergens and serum IgE levels to 4 allergens were tested.ResultsAmong the 3856 participants, single disease (asthma, allergic rhinitis or atopic dermatitis) was diagnosed in 27.7% subjects and allergic multimorbidity in 9.3%. Allergic multimorbidity occurred more commonly in children than in adults (p < 0.01). Asthma or atopic dermatitis alone were not associated with polysensitization. Rhinitis and multimorbidity were associated with polysensitization. Allergic multimorbidity occurred in 2.2% of participants with negative skin prick tests, 9.8% of those with one positive prick test (SPT ≥ 3 mm) and 20.6% of polysensitized ones (p < 0.001). There was an increasing risk of multimorbidity depending on the number of positive prick tests for both SPT ≥ 3 mm (OR 9.6–16.5) and SPT ≥ 6 mm (OR 5.9–13.7). A statistically significant relationship was found between allergic multimorbidity and sensitization to cat and mite allergens.ConclusionsMultimorbidity is associated with polysensitization especially in children compared with adults in Polish population cohort. New insights into single disease patterns were found: bronchial asthma is the strongest risk factor for the development of multimorbidity in comparison with allergic rhinitis and atopic dermatitis.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s13601-019-0246-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Background FLG null variants of which 2282del4 and R501X are the most frequent in Caucasians are established risk factors for atopic dermatitis (AD) with an effect probably mediated through impairment of epidermal barrier. Among subjects with AD FLG defects are also consistently associated with asthma and allergic rhinitis (AR) but it is less clear to what extent these associations are also present independently from skin disease. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the role of 2282del4 and R501X in predisposing to these allergic phenotypes in a Polish population.Methodology2282del4 and R501X were typed among 3,802 participants of the Epidemiology of Allergic Diseases in Poland (ECAP) survey, a cross-sectional population-based study using ECRHS II and ISAAC questionnaires, and ambulatory examination.Principal FindingsThe FLG null variants were associated with AD (OR = 2.01, CI: 1.20–3.36, P = 0.007), allergic rhinitis (in particular persistent form, OR = 1.69, CI:1.12–2.54, P = 0.011), and asthma (in particular atopic asthma, OR = 2.22, CI:1.24–3.96, P = 0.006). Association with atopic asthma (but not persistent allergic rhinitis) was also present in the absence of AD, (OR = 2.02, CI: 1.07–3.81, P = 0.027) as well as in the absence of AD and history of broadly defined inflammatory skin disease (OR = 2.30, CI: 1.07–4.93, P = 0.03). Association to atopic asthma would have not been found if diagnosis was made by questionnaire only (OR = 1.15, CI: 0.58–2.32, P = 0.8). We did not observe an association between FLG variants and allergic sensitizations (P = 0.8) or total IgE. (P = 0.6).Conclusions/SignificanceIn a Polish population FLG 2282del4 and R501X carriage increases risk for development of AD and atopic asthma (also in the absence of AD or history thereof). This suggests that interventions aimed at restoring epidermal barrier may have a general role in asthma prophylaxis/treatment.

In December 2020, the first coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine was authorized in the European Union. This study aimed to assess the changes in attitudes towards the COVID-19 vaccine and the willingness to get vaccinated among adults in Poland between January and April 2021. Secondary data analysis was carried out using data obtained from nationally representative cross-sectional surveys (four consecutive waves: January 2021, n = 1150; February 2021, n = 1179; March 2021, n = 1154; April 2021, n = 1131) carried out by the Public Opinion Research Center. About 31.3% of individuals declared a lack of willingness to vaccinate against COVID-19 regardless of the study wave. Significant changes (p < 0.001) were observed by gender and age. The highest percentage of respondents who declared a lack of willingness to vaccinate against COVID-19 was observed in the youngest age group (18–34 years), 48.5% among males and 45.6% among females. Among individuals over 65 years of age, males significantly more often declared their willingness to be vaccinated than females (p < 0.001). The main argument against the COVID-19 vaccine was concern about the potential side effects. Differences in attitudes towards the COVID-19 vaccine in respect of gender and age indicate the need to implement personalized communications to encourage different social groups to vaccinate against COVID-19.