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Incidental asthma prevention by immune serum globulin
Daniel Mimouni1, Michael Gdalevich, Karin Mimouni
1Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine, Department of Dermatology, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA. dmimoun1@jhmi.edu
Background:
After a case of hepatitis A in a food handling worker in a military base, the entire exposed population was vaccinated with immune serum globulin (ISG). We analyzed the potential effects of ISG on asthma attacks and respiratory infections.
Methods:
The base population was observed for asthma exacerbation for the 3 months after the immunization and was compared with the population of the same base a year earlier. Rates were tested using chi2 statistics.
Results:
The vaccinated population had a highly significant decrease in the incidence of asthma attacks (rate ratio [RR] = 0.2, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.09 to 0.45), sinusitis (RR = 0.34, 95% CI 0.2 to 0.58), and pneumonia (RR = 0.41, 95% CI 0.17 to 0.99). No significant difference was observed in the incidence rates of upper respiratory infections between the two groups.
Conclusions:
A single administration of ISG significantly reduces the rate of asthma attacks and respiratory infections.