Table 3.
Associations between Early-Life Fungi and Dampness with Development of Asthma & Rhinitis, Repeated Measures of Wheeze by Age 13 and Sensitization by Age 12 (Analyses evaluate associations of home dampness and all listed fungal genera jointly)
| CURRENT ASTHMA** | CURRENT RHINITIS** | ANY WHEEZE† | MOLD SENSITIZATION‡ | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cox Proportional Hazards Regression | Generalized Estimating Equations | Logistic Regression | ||||||
| (n = 408) | (n = 406) | (baseline n = 408; total obs. = 4809) | (n = 265) | |||||
| HR* | 95% CI | HR* | 95% CI | OR* | 95% CI | OR* | 95% CI | |
| HOME DAMPNESS | ||||||||
| asked at early-life home visit | 0.82 | (0.54, 1.24) | 1.11 | (0.73, 1.68) | 1.05 | (0.77, 1.42) | 1.66 | (0.84, 3.28) |
| ALTERNARIA | ||||||||
| Indoor air (loge CFU/m3) | 1.48 | (0.97, 2.26) | 1.07 | (0.70, 1.65) | 1.29 | (0.95, 1.76) | 1.03 | (0.51, 2.07) |
| Dust - bedroom floor (loge CFU/g) | 1.17 | (0.74, 1.84) | 0.79 | (0.51, 1.22) | 0.96 | (0.70, 1.32) | 1.57 | (0.75, 3.27) |
| CLADOSPORIUM | ||||||||
| Indoor air (loge CFU/m3) | 0.97 | (0.64, 1.45) | 0.82 | (0.54, 1.25) | 0.94 | (0.71, 1.26) | 1.08 | (0.56, 2.09) |
| Dust - bedroom floor (loge CFU/g) | 1.17 | (0.97, 1.41) | 0.91 | (0.77, 1.08) | 1.10 | (0.97, 1.24) | 1.11 | (0.82, 1.51) |
| ASPERGILLUS | ||||||||
| Indoor air (loge CFU/m3) | 1.19 | (0.79, 1.78) | 1.08 | (0.72, 1.63) | 1.20 | (0.88, 1.63) | 0.64 | (0.34, 1.23) |
| Dust - bedroom floor (loge CFU/g) | 0.99 | (0.83, 1.19) | 1.39§ | (1.11, 1.74) | 1.05 | (0.92, 1.20) | 1.04 | (0.79, 1.38) |
| PENICILLIUM | ||||||||
| Indoor air (loge CFU/m3) | 0.90 | (0.69, 1.17) | 1.01 | (0.76, 1.33) | 0.95 | (0.79, 1.14) | 0.88 | (0.58, 1.33) |
| Dust - bedroom floor (loge CFU/g) | 0.92 | (0.80, 1.07) | 1.04 | (0.89, 1.21) | 1.00 | (0.90, 1.11) | 1.08 | (0.84, 1.39) |
| YEASTS | ||||||||
| Indoor air (loge CFU/m3) | 1.13 | (0.82, 1.56) | 0.73 | (0.51, 1.04) | 1.24 | (0.99, 1.56) | 0.95 | (0.54, 1.66) |
| Dust - bedroom floor (loge CFU/g) | 0.86§ | (0.75, 0.98) | 1.06 | (0.92, 1.22) | 0.88§ | (0.80, 0.96) | 0.82 | (0.66, 1.01) |
| NONSPORULATING FUNGI | ||||||||
| Indoor air (loge CFU/m3) | 0.90 | (0.71, 1.15) | 1.15 | (0.90, 1.46) | 0.95 | (0.80, 1.12) | 1.13 | (0.78, 1.64) |
| Dust - bedroom floor (loge CFU/g) | 1.04 | (0.86, 1.24) | 1.05 | (0.88, 1.25) | 1.11 | (0.97, 1.28) | 1.04 | (0.77, 1.41) |
Hazard or odds ratios for the presence of home dampness or an inter-quartile increase in the log-transformed fungal concentration.
Models for asthma and rhinitis adjust for male gender (yes/no), African American ethnicity (yes/no), low total annual family income (<$30k), birth season (4 categories, ref: winter), Cesarean birth (yes/no), low birthweight quartile (yes/no), low-normal gestational age (≤38.5wks), bottle fed in bed/crib in first year of life (yes/no), lower respiratory illness in first year of life (yes/no), physician diagnosed parental history of asthma (yes/no), maternal smoking during pregnancy (yes/no), building type (1-family detached/1-family attached/2-family/≥ 3 apartments), and missing indicators for family income (3.2%) and parental asthma (1.2%).
Model for wheeze also adjusts for age, age2, gender, and their interactions, in addition to covariates in models for asthma and rhinitis.
Model for sensitization adjusts for birth season (4 categories, ref: winter), low-normal gestational age (≤38.5wks), maternal sensitivity to mold (Alternaria/Aspergillus) at birth (yes/no), lower respiratory illness in first year of life (yes/no), and building type (1-family detached/1-family attached/2-family/≥ 3 apartments).
NOTE: All associations are independent of, and not confounded by high early-life (2–3mths) cockroach allergen (≥2 U/g max Bla g 1 or 2 in living room dust), endotoxin (≥ median of measured samples = 81.3 EU/mg, in living room dust), dust mite allergen (≥10μg/g Der p or f 1 baby’s bed), cat allergen (≥8μg/g Fel d 1 home max), detectable mouse urinary protein (living room dust), and daycare attendance or pet dog ownership in the first year of life.
Definition of abbreviations: HR = hazard ratio; OR = odds ratio; CI = confidence interval; obs. = observations.
p≤0.05