Cockroach, Mouse Exposure Ups Illness Risk

NEW YORK - Antibodies to cockroach and mouse proteins are associated with a greater risk for wheeze, hay fever and eczema in preschoolers, New York researchers say.

Researchers at Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health in New York found evidence that the likelihood of developing the three ailments in preschool urban children was significantly higher among children exposed to antibodies of both cockroach and mouse allergens.

"These findings increase our understanding of the relationship between immune responses to indoor allergens and the development of asthma and allergies in very young children," the lead author, Dr. Kathleen Donohue of Columbia University, said in a statement.

Previous findings have shown exposure to multiple environmental pollutants is associated with an increased risk of asthma symptoms among children, Donohue said.

The study is published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.