YOU ARE NOW CONNECTED TO THE TOXLINE (1981 FORWARD, NON-ROYALTY) FILE. ==MITES, DUST - PILLOWS== 2 AUTHOR Weeks J AUTHOR Oliver J AUTHOR Birmingham K AUTHOR Crewes A AUTHOR Carswell F TITLE A combined approach to reduce mite allergen in the bedroom. SOURCE Clin Exp Allergy; VOL 25, ISS 12, 1995, P1179-83 ABSTRACT BACKGROUND: Asthma is a common chronic disease of childhood. House dust mite (HDM) are known to be a major source of allergen affecting atopic asthmatics. No single control method has been demonstrated to consistently reduce asthma. OBJECTIVE: We investigated the effect of a combination of two methods of HDM allergen control on HDM allergen content in the bedding and carpets of asthmatic children. METHODS: This was a double-blind placebo-controlled trial treating the bedrooms of 56 mite-sensitive asthmatic children. The carpet and the mattress, duvet and pillows (bedding) in the bedroom of children of the active group were treated with the acaricide Acarosan (benzyl benzoate). The bedding was then encased in vapour permeable waterproof fabric (Intervent--cotton coated with polyurethane) for 24 weeks. The carpet and bedding of the control group were treated with placebo and the bedding encased in cotton covers for 24 weeks. Dust samples were collected from all these items in a standard manner at regular intervals and Der p I content analysed. RESULTS: The group with active treatment had a median reduction of 480 ng (100%) in mite allergen from the mattress vs 215 ng (53%) reduction in placebo-treated group by 6 weeks. The Der p I content of the active group's bedding was always less than the placebo group after treatment (P < 0.01). The acaricide applied to the carpets or inside the mattress covers was ineffective in reducing allergen content. CONCLUSION: This study confirms the effectiveness of encasing covers in reducing the mite allergen exposure but indicates there is no further advantage in applying acaricide simultaneously. 3 AUTHOR Kemp TJ AUTHOR Siebers RW AUTHOR Fishwick D AUTHOR O'Grady GB AUTHOR Fitzharris P AUTHOR Crane J TITLE House dust mite allergen in pillows. SOURCE BMJ; VOL 313, ISS 7062, 1996, P916 4 AUTHOR Chang JH AUTHOR Becker A AUTHOR Ferguson A AUTHOR Manfreda J AUTHOR Simons E AUTHOR Chan H AUTHOR Noertjojo K AUTHOR Chan-Yeung M TITLE Effect of application of benzyl benzoate on house dust mite allergen levels. SOURCE Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol; VOL 77, ISS 3, 1996, P187-90 ABSTRACT BACKGROUND: Several acaricides have become available for reducing house dust mite allergen levels. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to assess whether the use of benzyl benzoate (Acarosan) provides additional benefit to the usual mite control measures including encasement of mattress and pillows with vinyl covers. METHODS: A randomized controlled trial was carried out in 26 homes (14 control versus 12 treatment) of asthmatic patients in two cities (Vancouver and Winnipeg). The control group had the usual house dust mite control measures including the use of vinyl covers for mattresses and pillows while the treatment group had application of benzyl benzoate to mattresses and carpets in the bedroom and the most commonly used room, in addition to the above control measures. Mite allergen levels were measured 3 months and immediately before, 1 week, and 1 and 3 months after the application of house dust mite control measures. Patients kept diary cards on asthma symptoms and peak expiratory flow rates morning and evening one month before and three months after the onset of mite allergen control measures. RESULTS: A reduction of mite allergen level was found in mattress samples in both groups, statistically significant at all times in the treatment group and at one and three months in the control group. Mite allergen levels on floor carpets also showed progressive reduction in both groups, but were significantly different in the treatment group (compared with controls) at 1 week, and were lower compared with baseline in the treatment group up to 3 months. No significant changes in asthma symptoms, peak expiratory flow rates, spirometric measurements, or bronchial hyperresponsiveness were observed among treatment or control group subjects. CONCLUSION: The addition of benzyl benzoate to conventional house dust mite control measures resulted in a significant reduction in floor carpet dust mite levels that persisted for 3 months. The results of this study should be confirmed in a larger and longer study. 6 AUTHOR Rigamonti IE AUTHOR Di Berardino L AUTHOR Lozzia GC TITLE Study on the ability of a new barrier to reduce airborne mite allergens. SOURCE Allerg Immunol (Paris); VOL 28, ISS 3, 1996, P70-3 ABSTRACT Environmental control, especially means for blocking the release into the air of mite allergens embedded in padded furniture (mattress, pillows), represents the first important step in the treatment of IgE-mediated allergic diseases. New to the market is a home hygiene spray that creates a protective barrier on padded furniture and is thereby able to contain the dispersion into the air of allergic particles. We tested the effectiveness of the spray in vitro. Since mites, especially D. Pteronyssinus, are considered the foremost allergens, we verified the ability of the invisible barrier to impede the diffusion of the allergen and the mobile forms of these mites (Der p 1, Der 2). The product under exam created a barrier that totally blocked the passage of mobile forms and almost totally prevented the passage of allergens (> 99%). 9 AUTHOR Marks GB AUTHOR Tovey ER AUTHOR Green W AUTHOR Shearer M AUTHOR Salome CM AUTHOR Woolcock AJ TITLE House dust mite allergen avoidance: a randomized controlled trial of surface chemical treatment and encasement of bedding [see comments] SOURCE Clin Exp Allergy; VOL 24, ISS 11, 1994, P1078-83 ABSTRACT To test the effectiveness of a house dust mite (HDM) allergen avoidance strategy we conducted a randomized controlled trial in 35 atopic subjects with asthma, aged 13 to 60 living in Sydney - a high HDM allergen environment. After a 3 month run-in period, subjects were randomized to active allergen avoidance treatment (n = 17) or placebo (n = 18) groups and followed for 6 months. The active treatment involved placing impermeable covers over the mattress, pillows and duvet and spraying the remaining bedding, as well as the carpets and furniture, with a tannic acid/acaricidal spray. Subjects kept a daily record of symptoms and peak expiratory flow rates and had 3 monthly assessments of lung function and airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR). Dust samples were collected from the bed, the bedroom floor and the living room floor at 3 monthly intervals and 2 weeks after the treatment. Mean HDM allergen levels at baseline at these sites were, in the active group, 15.5, 9.6 and 10.2 micrograms Der p I/g of fine dust, and, in the placebo group 25.7, 11.8 and 6.3 micrograms/g. Two weeks after the allergen avoidance treatment the HDM allergen level in the beds was reduced to 29% of baseline (95% CI 16-50%, P = 0.038 compared with placebo), but was not significantly different at 3 or 6 months. There was also no significant effect of the allergen avoidance treatment on symptom scores, peak flow variability, lung function or AHR P > 0.1).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS) 17 AUTHOR Carswell F AUTHOR Robinson DW AUTHOR Oliver J AUTHOR Clark J AUTHOR Robinson P AUTHOR Wadsworth J TITLE House dust mites in Bristol. SOURCE Clin Allergy; VOL 12, ISS 6, 1982, P533-45 ABSTRACT A survey of bedding in Bristol revealed reducing mite concentrations on children's toys, mattresses, overblankets and pillows. Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus was the commonest mite found. A vacuuming schedule was devised for removing mites so that a double blind trial could be carried out. Investigation suggests that even with expert utilization of efficient vacuum cleaners the clinical efficacy would be limited as the mites appear to rapidly migrate back into the bedding.