Владение питомцами в России и риск развития аллергии на животных

Abstract

The number of people with animal allergies is constantly increasing, while there is still insufficient research information on the prevalence of epidermal allergies in Russia. Objective. To study the characteristics of pet-keeping in Russia and the risk of developing pet sensitization. A web-based questionnaire (https://docs.google.com/) was created in 2021. It consisted of 23 questions about pet-keeping. We received 311 completed surveys from different regions of Russia. Eighty-four percent of the families interviewed had pets, including cats (69%), dogs (43.7%), birds (5.4%), fish (3.4%), and rodents (1.5%). Children were in contact with animals since birth in 66.6% of cases. Families more often had to give up cats (in 69.6% of cases) than dogs (in 27.4% of cases) (p < 0,05). Animal allergy was the main reason for not having a pet at home (39.8%). In 43% of cases, an adult family member happened to be pet allergic rather than a child family member. It was an allergic reaction to cats (83%), dogs (43%), horses (11.3%) and less commonly to mice, rats, and rabbits. Respondents mostly linked their allergies with pet hair, less often to saliva and urine (p < 0,05); in about 30% of cases, the allergen source remained unknown. Allergy symptoms were the most common way of diagnosing animal allergy, followed by IgE blood test and skin prick test (42.7%, 17.5% and 10.2%, respectively). In about 40% of cases, it was recommended to remove the pet from the home. Conclusions. Pet ownership is very common in Russian households with cats being the most popular pet. Animal allergy is announced as the main reason for removing the pet from the home. Pet hair is the first allergen source. Antihistamines, barrier agents (aqua maris ectoin), and nasal steroids are usually used in therapy. Key words: animal allergy, pet-keeping