Asthma and allergy in Albania and the UK

In the first phase of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Ch ildhood, a large difference in occurrence of asthma symptoms was seen betwe en children in Albania and the UK. We did skin-prick tests with various all ergens and measured peak expiratory flow rate in about 1000 children from e ach country. A large difference in the proportion of exercise-induced bronc hial reactivity was evident between children from Albania and the UK (0.8% vs 5.4% respectively). However, the frequency of allergic sensitisation was closely similar (15.0% vs 17.8%, respectively). These results suggest that large geographical variations in asthma prevalence can arise without diffe rences In frequency of atopy.