TYPE-I HYPERSENSITIVITY TO POLLEN OF THE POACEAE FAMILY (GRAMINEAE), BY TRIBE, IN ATOPIC-DERMATITIS PATIENTS

Type I Hypersensitivity to Poaceae polen was tested in 27 Costa Rican patients with a clinical diagnosis of Atopic Dermatitis (six were males). Skin prick tests were done with 1/10 W/V, 50% glycerinated, pollen extracts, organized by tribes. Most patients had several allergic problems. Sensitivity increased with the number of allergic diagnoses. Positivity ranged from 25% in patients with Atopic Dermatitis exclusively to 100% in those with three or four simultaneous allergic illnesses. Andropogoneae was highest with 37% while the lower possitivity was in the Paniceae (22.2%).