Brianna C. Aoyama, Joseph M. Collaco, Amit Agarwal, Gangaram Akangire, Eric D. Austin, Manvi Bansal, Anita Bhandari, A. Ioana Critea, Lystra P. Hayden, Jonathan C. Levin, Winston M. Manimtim, Audrey N. Miller, Paul E. Moore, Antonia P. Popova, Lawrence M. Rhein, Catherine A. Sheils, Steven H. Abman, Christopher D. Baker, Sara K. Dawson, Mehtap Haktanir Abul, Jennifer K. Henningfeld, Joanne M. Lagatta, Roopa Siddaiah, Nicole Stephenson, Demet Toprak, Sharon A. McGrath-Morrow
Johns Hopkins University. Arkansas Children’s Hospital and University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Children’s Mercy-Kansas City and University of Missouri Kansas City School of Medicine. Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and University of Pennsylvania. Riley Children’s Hospital and Indiana University. Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School. Nationwide Children’s Hospital and Ohio State University. University of Michigan. University of Massachusetts. University of Colorado School of Medicine. Medical College of Wisconsin Milwaukee. Brown University School of Medicine. Penn State Health. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. University of Washington
United States
Pediatric Research
Pediatr Res 2025;
DOI: 10.1038/s41390-025-04277-6
Abstract
Background: A history of atopy is associated with respiratory morbidities in term-born children; however, little is known about how allergies/atopy affect respiratory outcomes in children with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). This study aims to describe the prevalence of reported allergies/atopy in young children with BPD and assess whether allergies/atopy are associated with outpatient outcomes.
Methods: A retrospective longitudinal cohort study of children between 0 and 36 months of age followed at outpatient BPD clinics was performed using data from questionnaires administered during routine clinical encounters. The presence of allergy/atopy was defined by caregiver questionnaires. Generalized estimating equations were used to adjust associations between allergy/atopy and respiratory outcomes.
Results: Rates of reported allergy/atopy in a cohort of infants and children with BPD (21.6%) were similar to previously published rates in healthy children. Children with atopy/allergy were more likely to be born at earlier gestational ages, have pulmonary hypertension, and be non-white and non-Hispanic compared to their non-atopic peers and to experience trouble breathing, nighttime symptoms, activity limitations, and rescue medication use during the first three years of life.
Conclusions: In children with BPD, allergy/atopy was more common among those born at earlier gestational ages and was significantly associated with increased respiratory symptoms during the first 3 years of life. Further studies are needed to assess whether the association between allergy/atopy and increased respiratory morbidity persists throughout childhood and affects later lung function and whether potential interventions, including inhaled steroids, may modify this risk.
Impact: There is limited data on the prevalence of atopy/allergy in children with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) and the association between allergy/atopy and respiratory outcomes in this population. Our findings demonstrate that in children with BPD, allergy/atopy was more common among those born at earlier gestational ages and was associated with increased respiratory symptoms and rescue medication use during the first 3 years of life. Further studies are needed to determine whether this association persists throughout childhood and affects later lung function and whether potential interventions may modify this risk.
Category
Class III. Pulmonary Hypertension Associated with Lung Disease
Acquired Patient Factors Associated with Pulmonary Vascular Disease
Environmental Factors Associated with Pulmonary Vascular Disease
Age Focus: Pediatric Pulmonary Vascular Disease
Fresh or Filed Publication: Fresh (PHresh). Less than 1-2 years since publication
Article Access
Free PDF File or Full Text Article Available Through PubMed or DOI: No