Variations of pollen and mold concentrations in 1998 during the strong El Nino event of 1997-1998 and their impact on clinical exacerbations of allergic rhinitis, asthma, and sinusitis

Previous studies of pollen and mold dispersal have not correlated meteorolo gical phenomena with clinical exacerbations of asthma, allergic rhinitis, a nd sinusitis. We utilized the resources of 11 New England Society of Allerg y (NESA) pollen collectors, a certified palynologist, over a dozen weather stations for meteorological data, and 10 emergency rooms to explore the eff ects of the strong "El Nino" of 1997-1998 on our region during the 1998 pol len season. There was a marked increase in the number of clinical exacerbat ions of asthma, allergic rhinitis, and sinusitis in April, May, and June of 1998. Several emergency rooms reported a greater increase in visits for si nusitis as compared to asthma. In addition, maximum mold counts occurred tr io to three months earlier than in 1997. Maximum pollen counts were also hi gher than in 1997, and occurred two to four weeks earlier for most tree pol len types.