Reduced Mouse in the Houses of Allergic Children

Newswise — Mouse allergen levels were reduced as much as 77 percent -- compared to a control group increase of 358 percent -- in inner-city Boston homes of allergic children with asthma using an integrated pest management intervention.

Wanda Phipatanakul, M.D., at Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, and colleagues, studied 18 homes of children with positive mouse allergen skin test results and at least mild persistent asthma in a report published this month in Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, the scientific journal of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI). Investigators randomly selected 12 intervention homes and 6 control homes from the 18 homes studied. All of the homes showed evidence of mouse infestation. During the 5-month intervention the homes received environmental pest-management controls consisting of filling holes with copper mesh, vacuuming, cleaning, and using low-toxicity pesticides and traps.

Results showed the intervention homes had a significant reduction in mouse allergens in the bedroom and kitchen, but less of a reduction in the living room compared to the control homes:

-- 77.3 percent reduction in the bedroom, compared with an increase of 358 percent in control homes;

-- 78.8 percent reduction in the kitchen, compared with an increase of 319 percent in control homes;

-- 67.7 percent reduction in the living room, compared with a reduction of 32 percent in control homes.

Although an extremely high prevalence of mouse allergen has been demonstrated in inner-city homes of children with asthma, Dr. Phipatanakul and her team found no published studies to date that evaluate the potential role of environmental intervention in reducing mouse allergen.

The ACAAI is a professional medical organization comprising 4,963 qualified allergists-immunologists and related health care professionals. The College is dedicated to the clinical practice of allergy, asthma and immunology through education and research to promote the highest quality of patient care.

Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol. April 2004;92:420-425