NCT05101733

Mold Allergy in Austria: Clinical Relevance of Alternaria Alternata and Related Species

Pilot Study Regarding Mold Allergy in Austria: Clinical Relevance of Alternaria Alternata and Related Species

• Status: Unknown
• Phase: —
• Study type: Observational
• Enrollment: 70 (estimated)
• Sponsor: Medical University of Vienna · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years – 60 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

Mold allergies are becoming increasingly important among the population. Increasing amounts of fungal spores are analyzed in air-samples because of urbanization, industrialization of food products and climate change. Mold also grows indoor and hence lead to additional health complaints. Alternaria alternata, and its only major allergen Alt a 1, is the most important fungus for allergy sufferers. Alternaria alternata can not only cause allergic symptoms but can also cause intensified asthmatic symptoms. Besides Alternaria alternata, there are over 700 other species of the genus Alternaria. The influence of these other species on allergic symptoms is poorly understood. Furthermore, prevalence and incidence of an allergy to Alternaria alternata among the Austrian population is not known. Estimates range between 1-5% among the Austrian population. This study aims to further investigate the incidence and characteristics of an allergy to Alternaria in Austria. This will be investigated with the help of participants (50 Alternaria allergy sufferers and 20 non allergic participants), spore counts in Austria and crowd-sourced symptom data.

Conditions

• Fungal Allergy
• Allergy

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
DIAGNOSTIC_TEST	Nasal provocation	Nasal provocation with Alternaria alternata extract. Changes in nasal mucosa are measured with a rhinomanometry device
DIAGNOSTIC_TEST	Skin-Prick Test	Skin-Prick-Test is administered to determine an allergy against Alternaria
DIAGNOSTIC_TEST	Blood draw	For further analysis
DIAGNOSTIC_TEST	Collection of nasal secretion	Allergy sufferers: After nasal provocation Non-allergics: After administration of isotonic nasal spray

Timeline

• Start date: 2021-10-14
• Primary completion: 2023-07-01
• Completion: 2023-07-01
• First posted: 2021-11-01
• Last updated: 2022-04-12

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Austria