DOHaD and Allergic Diseases in Schoolchildren: Does IUGR Affect Risk of Allergic Diseases?

Abstract

RATIONALE: Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD) is the hypothesis that states that the change in fetal programming in response to preterm birth or intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) is associated with metabolic diseases later in life. It is not clear whether it is also associated with allergic diseases. Our aim was to determine whether the prevalence of allergic diseases in schoolchildren was affected by DOHaD-related prenatal factors, such as being born late preterm (34-36 weeks) or light for dates (LFD). METHODS: A questionnaire-based survey on the prevalence of allergic diseases, such as bronchial asthma (BA), atopic dermatitis (AD), allergic rhinitis (AR), allergic conjunctivitis (AC), and food allergy (FA), as well as birth weight and gestational age, was administered to more than 13,000 schoolchildren. Multivariate analysis was performed to test the differences in the prevalence of allergic diseases between those with or without DOHaD-related factors. RESULTS: The prevalence of any allergic disease did not differ significantly between those born late preterm and term. On the other hand, the prevalence of those with any allergic diseases was significantly lower among LFD children than among non-LFD children (p=0.03). Specifically, the prevalence of FA was significantly lower in LFD children than in non-LFD children (1.9% vs. 3.9%, p=0.004). Although not statistically significant, the prevalence of other allergic diseases was also lower in LFD children. CONCLUSIONS: The present data suggest that the change in fetal programming due to IUGR might suppress allergic diseases, especially food allergy, in schoolchildren. Possible mechanisms are discussed.