[Variabilidad del patrón de sensibilidad alérgica en adultos mayores].

Objective: Describe the pattern of allergic sensitivity in elderly.

Methods: Elderly (>60 years old) with a diagnosis of allergic respiratory disease in whom sensitivity was identified by pricking with ALK-abello extracts (Port Washington, NY, United States) were included. The results were analyzed using descriptive statistics and compared with a series of young adults in a 3:1 ratio. Association analyzes were performed with c2 test using SPSSv.21 software (SPSS software, IBM, NY, USA).

Results: 17 elderlies, predominantly women were identified (70%) with an average age of 64 years, 52% suffered from asthma and 47% allergic rhinitis, 82% were predominantly intradomiciliary polysensitive (82%), the most frequent being Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (50%), decreasing to < 18% (p<0.01) to various species (Ligustrum vulgare, Salsola kali, Periplaneta americana, Canis familiaris, Juniperus sp and Fraxinus sp). Interestingly, AM were more sensitive to mites compared to young adults (p<0.01/OR= 8.92). This may be because the reactivity of the skin may decrease with age.

Conclusions: The main allergic sensitivity that can be identified by conventional techniques in elderly is Dermatophagoides pteronyssinusm, up to 50%.