Abstract
Summary The relationship of indoor environmental allergens to asthma, especially in genetically predisposed individuals is better and better established. Knowledge of the principal indoor allergens has so far been secondary to identification of major allergen producers — both animal and vegetable — present in domestic homes. Chemical dosages of the major allergens (mainly allergens from mites and domestic animals) being now available, quantification of the allergens we are exposed to, has become possible: the most meaningful results are reported for each of them. Strategies for indoor allergen avoidance combine three methods: elimination of reservoirs of settled dust such as bed material, carpets, furnishing; control of the sources of new allergens (living mites, household pets, occasionally plants); reduction of airborne allergens. The different procedures involved in eradicating mites and eliminating mite and animal allergens are reviewed in detail. Objective data concerning the effectiveness of environmental control measures in the management of asthmatic patients are difficult to obtain, sometimes giving contradictory results. Further clinical studies are still needed with better designs concerning the most appropriate avoidance methods and criteria of patients' selection.
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