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ASTHMA IN CHILDREN: THE INHALED ALLERGENS – INDOOR ALLERGENS – WHAT IS HOUSE DUST?

House dust has been recognized as an important asthma trigger. Indoor dust, as sometimes the house dust is referred to, is not quite the same as outdoor dust, which is a simple nonallergic irritant.

House dust is the dust produced indoors by the breakdown of animal and plant material present in the house. Such material includes cotton, wool, jute, hemp, animal hair, upholstered furniture, carpets, and feathers used as stuffing in mattresses, pillows, and quilts. Skin scales from humans, a large variety of moulds (fungi) as well as dander (skin flakes of an animal’s fur or hair) and saliva from pets, add to the mixture of house dust. The allergenic agent in house dust is a specific mite that subsists on this dust.

The House Dust Mite. The house dust mite is a tiny mite of the species Dermatophagoides pteronyssimus which survives on the shed-off human scales; that is why it is called dermato (skin), phagoides (eats).

This mite has an unsegmented body supported by eight legs. It is less than one millimetre in size, and can be seen only through a microscope. It is extremely light and floats in the air when a bed or a room is cleaned. It lives primarily in mattresses; but also breeds in carpets and upholstered furniture. The food it eats, that is human scales or the House dust mite rubbings from the skin, is found abundantly in mattresses. On an average a person spends at least eight hours in the bed. The warm temperature of the mattress, when a person is occupying it, is ideal for the growth of the mite.

The mite thrives in humid, temperate climates. Houses with dark and humid interior have more mites in the house dust. On the other hand, high altitudes with a dry and cold climate are not suitable for their growth.

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ASTHMA IN CHILDREN: THE INHALED ALLERGENS – INDOOR ALLERGENS – WHAT IS HOUSE DUST? House dust has been recognized as an important asthma trigger. Indoor dust, as sometimes the house dust is referred to, is not quite the same as outdoor dust, which is a simple nonallergic irritant.House dust is the dust produced indoors by the breakdown of animal and plant material present in the house. Such material includes cotton, wool, jute, hemp, animal hair, upholstered furniture, carpets, and feathers used as stuffing in mattresses, pillows, and quilts. Skin scales from humans, a large variety of moulds (fungi) as well as dander (skin flakes of an animal’s fur or hair) and saliva from pets, add to the mixture of house dust. The allergenic agent in house dust is a specific mite that subsists on this dust.The House Dust Mite. The house dust mite is a tiny mite of the species Dermatophagoides pteronyssimus which survives on the shed-off human scales; that is why it is called dermato (skin), phagoides (eats).This mite has an unsegmented body supported by eight legs. It is less than one millimetre in size, and can be seen only through a microscope. It is extremely light and floats in the air when a bed or a room is cleaned. It lives primarily in mattresses; but also breeds in carpets and upholstered furniture. The food it eats, that is human scales or the House dust mite rubbings from the skin, is found abundantly in mattresses. On an average a person spends at least eight hours in the bed. The warm temperature of the mattress, when a person is occupying it, is ideal for the growth of the mite.The mite thrives in humid, temperate climates. Houses with dark and humid interior have more mites in the house dust. On the other hand, high altitudes with a dry and cold climate are not suitable for their growth.*21\260\8*

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