J ALLERGY CLIN IMMUNOL

FEBRUARY 2010

AB98 Abstracts

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385 Need for Education About Sesame AllergyV. Krishna, MD, FAAAAI, S. KrishnaPhD, MBA; Asthma &

Allergy Specialists, PC, Winchester, MA.

RATIONALE: Sesame is increasingly being used in a variety of foods

such as tahini, hummus, sesame crackers, cookies etc. Although parents

have good awareness about peanuts, tree nuts and other major allergens,

most parents are unaware of the allergic tendency of sesame.

METHODS: The prevalence of IgE sensitivity to sesame food allergen

was investigated in a suburban community practice in Boston. As part of

medical history, parents were questioned about recognition of sesame as

an allergen. Allergy testing was performed by scratch testing using com-

mercial sesame extract.

RESULTS: Less than one in 5 parents of children with sesame allergy

were aware of the allergenic potential of sesame until their child skin-tested

positive. Sesame is known to cause anaphylactic shock in addition to atopic

dermatitis, urticaria/angioedema and gastrointestinal symptoms and often

asymptomatic, although sensitized. The awareness of allergenic tendency

to sesame in suburban population is under-recognized. Patients were gen-

erally more aware about peanuts, tree nuts, milk and other major allergens,

but not sesame. We postulate that early sesame sensitization is likely due to

lack of knowledge about the allergenicity of sesame, lack of labeling reg-

ulations, as well as the easier availability and increasing consumption of

ethnic foods in the general population.

CONCLUSIONS: The general awareness of sesame as an allergen is low

in the suburban population. Education specific to sesame should be pro-

vided to primary-care-physicians, parents, day-care and school personnel.

Sesame should be made easier to identify on food labels. The food industry

should be subjected to stricter labeling guidelines on this emerging food

allergen.

386 Asthma Education: Changing the Way We CommunicateM. E. Cataletto; Winthrop University Hospital, Mineola, NY.

RATIONALE: E-marketers have been tracking the way children commu-

nicate with each other and have responded by the way they engage them as

internet users. They estimate that 82% teens, ages 12 - 17 and 43.5% of

children ages 3 -11 will use the internet on a monthly basis in 2009.

Predictors suggest that these numbers will continue to increase. The pur-

pose of this study is to examine the impact of an online asthma education

program.

METHODS: The Girl Scout Asthma Awareness Patch Program: Helping

Girls Breathe Easier went online October 2005 in order to improve out-

reach of the educational messages. Outreach was determined by the num-

ber of program downloads as well as the geographic distribution of

respondents. Evaluations reflecting the responses of 2,131 participants be-

tween October 1, 2005 through July 1, 2009 were collected from the

Zoomerang online survey tool and analyzed. This study was funded in

part by AAAAI.

RESULTS: There were 181,706 downloads of the program in English and

4,326 downloads of the Spanish language version. Ninety four percent of

the downloads were from sites throughout the United States; 6% from for-

eign based sites. Over 21,500 girls were awarded the asthma awareness

patch after completing the program. We received evaluation data from

2,131 participants who completed the asthma awareness patch program.

Post-program knowledge outcome measures showed improvement in all

core content areas.

CONCLUSIONS: Stand alone online and tailored asthma education pro-

grams with opportunities for internet-based educational reinforcement are

effective and sustainable methods to reach children and teens with asthma.

387 The Attitudes Toward and Beliefs About HIV DisclosureAmong Perinatally-Infected HIV-Positive Youth and theirCaregivers

L. M. Noroski1, G. Parcel2, Y. Fu2, C. Markham2; 1Texas Childrens

Hospital, Houston, TX, 2University of Texas, Houston, TX.

RATIONALE: HIV is more common than primary immunodeficiencies,

without cure to date and is preventable. Perinatally-infected HIV-positive

youth have survived unexpectedly into adulthood, have had unique HIV

disclosure experiences and now face these issues in adulthood. Despite ef-

fective HIV therapies, no HIV prevention exists that has diminished HIV

infections rates. At least 25% of the HIV-infected are unaware of their di-

agnosis. Hypothesis: attitudes and beliefs of HIV disclosure determine the

likelihood of HIV disclosure behaviors.

METHODS: Population: Perinatally-infected HIV-positive/disclosed

youth (aged 13-24 years) of Allergy/Immunology at Texas Children’s

Hospital and caregivers; Instrument: needs assessment theory-driven

surveys.

RESULTS: Of the eligible population, 26 participants (15 youth; 11 care-

givers) completed The Care to Share HIV Disclosure surveys that were

framed in the Theory of Reasoned Action/Theory of Planned Behavior

(21-item, quantitative) and in the Transactional Model of Stress/Coping

(1-item qualitative) to define the attitudes and beliefs (A/B) of HIV disclo-

sure. A/B were classified as promoters (P) or inhibitors (I) of HIV disclo-

sure. A/B - P (youth and caregivers)-HIV-knowledge; close family; caring

people; when helping others; pre-puberty; (youth)-partner disclosure. A/B

- I (youth and caregivers)-keeping HIV a secret; (youth)-close friends

(caregivers)-partner notification; others� opinions. (r50.63).

CONCLUSIONS: HIV stigma was identified by youths� belief in and

caregivers� ambivalence to keeping HIVa secret from everyone. Yet youth

and caregivers demonstrated perceived power for HIV disclosure when

helping others and in settings of HIV-knowledge seeking and teaching.

The revealed A/B serve as formative steps to unfolding effective HIV pre-

vention planning and raise implications for immunologists in screening for

HIV.

388 High Prevalence of Asthma and Obesity in Children fromPittsburgh's Inner-City

D. P. Skoner1, J. Padden2, J. M. Koehrsen1, D. A. Gentile1; 1Allegheny

General Hospital, Pittsburgh, PA, 2Duquesne University School of Phar-

macy, Pittsburgh, PA.

RATIONALE: Inner-city children are at risk for a variety of health prob-

lems including asthma and obesity. The objective of this study was to de-

termine the prevalence of asthma and obesity in an inner-city pediatric

population from Pittsburgh, PA.

METHODS: Sixty-nine inner-city children enrolled in an after-school

program at a local church participated in a health screen. The screen con-

sisted of measurement of height, weight and lung function, and completion

of a survey to evaluate asthma presence and control.

RESULTS: Seventeen (24%) participants had a known diagnosis of

asthma and 14 of those 17 (82%) had poorly controlled asthma. Twenty-

five of the 52 (48%) participants without a diagnosis of asthma failed the

asthma screen (FEV1 < 80% predicted). Fifty-one percent of the partici-

pants had a BMI in the normal range while 19% and 30% were overweight

and obese, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS: Both the prevalence of asthma and obesity in this pop-

ulation is alarming and cause for concern. More alarming is that over 80%

of the known asthmatic participants had poor disease control. Additionally,

the rate of screen failures for asthma is quite alarming in that it represents

children with potential asthma that need further evaluation and possibly

even treatment. Future efforts need to focus on community based interven-

tions to improve health outcomes in this at-risk population.