Abstract
Objectives: This study attempted to investigate the allergic histories and the distribution of offending allergens in the general public and further to help their diagnosis and treatment with Oriental Medicine. Methods: Allergic skin tests (AST) were performed and allergic histories were taken of 359 members of the general public who visited the International Exhibition on Oriental Medicine from Sept. 1 to Sept. 5, 2000. The allergen reagents for AST were three (House dust, D. farinae, Dog hair) and the control reagent was histamine solution. Results: 1.50.1 % of the subjects (n=359) were positive to AST. The ratio between males' positivity and females' was 1.06：1. 2. The younger the subjects were, the higher the positivity was. 3. The positive subjects' (n=180) positivity to three allergens was as follows: D. farinae 98.9%, House dust 30.0%, Dog hair 1.7%. 4. The younger the positive subjects were, the higher the positivity to House dust was. In contrast, the positivity to D. farinae was high in all age groups. 5.71.1 % of the positive subjects reacted positively to monotype allergen and 28.9% reacted positively to multiple allergens (2.46：1). The most common monotype allergen was D. farinae (98.4%) and the most common combination of multiple allergens was House dust and D. farinae (94.2%). 6.52.8% of the positive subjects (n=180) and 51.4% of the negative subjects (n=179) represented the history of allergic diseases. There was no relationship between allergic skin test and allergic diseases. Conclusion: To help in diagnosis and treatment with oriental medicine, research to analyze the relationship between allergic skin test and allergic diseases should be continued on the basis of Oriental medical theories.
