Mold may aggravate asthma

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Mold may aggravate asthma

Monday, September 16, 2002

By HALEH V. SAMIEI

Washington Post News Service

THE QUESTION: Do cats, pollen, and mold affect the severity of asthma?

PAST STUDIES have shown an association between mold and life-threatening

complications or death from asthma.

THIS STUDY examined the effect of exposure to cat dander, pollen, and two

types of mold on the risk of severe but not life-threatening asthma in 1,132

asthmatic adults from Europe, Australia, and New Zealand.

The researchers found no association between severe asthma and exposure to

pollens or cats. However, the participants who experienced severe asthma

were more than twice as likely to have been exposed to mold as were

participants who experienced mild reactions.

WHO MAY BE AFFECTED BY THESE FINDINGS? Adults with asthma.

CAVEATS: The results may not apply to people from other regions. In

addition, the prevalence of severe asthma may have been reported

inconsistently. Finally, those exposed to mold were usually also exposed to

the other allergens, so those substances cannot be ruled out as causes of

severe asthma.

BOTTOM LINE: Asthmatics may wish to pay special attention to their symptoms

and use appropriate treatment during autumn, when mold spore counts

increase. They may also wish to reduce mold growth indoors by increasing

ventilation and decreasing dampness.

FIND THIS STUDY: Aug. 24 issue of the British Medical Journal or bmj.com.

***

THE QUESTION: Does immediate lowering of cholesterol affect the risk of

stroke in people with heart disease?

PAST STUDIES have suggested that reducing blood cholesterol levels after a

heart attack may lessen a survivor's high risk for stroke. In these studies,

however, treatment with cholesterol-lowering drugs did not begin until a few

months after the heart attack.

THIS STUDY compared the risk of stroke in 3,086 patients with chest pain or

heart attack who received either 80 milligrams daily of the

cholesterol-lowering drug atorvastatin (Lipitor) or a placebo within four

days of hospitalization. People in both groups also received advice about a

cholesterol-reducing diet.

The average level of the participants' LDL, or " bad, " cholesterol at the

beginning of the study was 124 milligrams per deciliter. (Healthy levels are

under 100.) In the next four months, LDL levels rose slightly in the placebo

group but decreased by 40 percent in the treatment group, to an average of

72. Half as many patients who took atorvastatin had strokes (12, three of

them fatal) as did patients who took the placebo (24, two fatal).

WHO MAY BE AFFECTED BY THESE FINDINGS? People hospitalized for chest pain or

heart attack.

CAVEATS: Pfizer, the manufacturer of Lipitor, funded the study. Also, the

results need to be verified in more people and for a longer time. Finally,

other statins may have different effects.

BOTTOM LINE: People hospitalized with chest pain or a heart attack may wish

to consult their physician about using statins immediately.

FIND THIS STUDY: Sept. 3 issue of the rapid access edition of Circulation;

abstract online at circ.ahajournals.org/rapidaccess.

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