American Journal of Epidemiology Vol. 154, No. 10 : 909-915
Copyright © 2001 by The Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health
ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS |
Does the Sibling Effect Have Its Origin In Utero? Investigating Birth Order, Cord Blood Immunoglobulin E Concentration, and Allergic Sensitization at Age 4 Years
1 Department of Epidemiology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI.
2 The David Hide Asthma & Allergy Research Centre, St. Mary's Hospital, Newport, Isle of Wight, United Kingdom.
3 Division of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, John Curtin School of Medical Research, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia.
There is a great body of evidence that siblings have a protective effect against atopic manifestations such as hay fever, atopic eczema, allergic sensitization, or asthma. Factors that may explain this association remain largely unknown. One hypothesis is that siblings promote early infections in childhood, and repeated infections protect against atopic disorders. Another hypothesis, the potential in utero programming, has been neglected. The authors investigated if cord blood immunoglobulin E (IgE) is dependent upon birth order and if both are associated with an increased incidence of allergic sensitization (skin prick test) at the age of 4 years in a cohort of 981 newborns recruited between January 1989 and February 1990 on the Isle of Wight, England. The authors found that IgE is reduced with increasing birth order (first child: odds ratio (OR) = 1; second child: OR = 0.78, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.57, 1.05; third child: OR = 0.59, 95% CI: 0.41, 0.83). Cord IgE, but not birth order, is a significant predictor of skin prick test positivity at age 4 (IgE below detection limit: OR = 1; IgE of 0.2–<0.5 kilounits/liter: OR = 1.11, 95% CI: 0.73, 1.68; IgE of 
0.5 kilounits/liter: OR = 2.63, 95% CI: 1.62, 4.29). The findings suggest that cord IgE is reduced in pregnancies with higher order, indicating that the sibling effect may have its origin in utero.
allergy and immunology; birth order; child; fetal blood; IgE; immunoglobulins; prospective studies; skin tests
Abbreviations: CI, confidence interval; IgE, immunoglobulin E; OR, odds ratio
CiteULike 
Connotea 
Del.icio.us What's this?
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  P. Subbarao, P. J. Mandhane, and M. R. Sears Asthma: epidemiology, etiology and risk factors Can. Med. Assoc. J., October 27, 2009; 181(9): E181 - E190. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 A. M. Hughes, S. Crouch, T. Lightfoot, P. Ansell, J. Simpson, and E. Roman Eczema, Birth Order, and Infection Am. J. Epidemiol., May 15, 2008; 167(10): 1182 - 1187. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 S. Goldberg, E. Israeli, S. Schwartz, T. Shochat, G. Izbicki, O. Toker-Maimon, E. Klement, and E. Picard Asthma Prevalence, Family Size, and Birth Order Chest, June 1, 2007; 131(6): 1747 - 1752. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 P. M. Bracci, T. B. Dalvi, and E. A. Holly Residential history, family characteristics and non-hodgkin lymphoma, a population-based case-control study in the san francisco bay area. Cancer Epidemiol. Biomarkers Prev., July 1, 2006; 15(7): 1287 - 1294. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 P Cullinan Childhood allergies, birth order and family size Thorax, January 1, 2006; 61(1): 3 - 5. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
S Kinra, G Davey Smith, M Jeffreys, D Gunnell, B Galobardes, and P McCarron Association between sibship size and allergic diseases in the Glasgow Alumni Study Thorax, January 1, 2006; 61(1): 48 - 53. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
T. Westergaard, K. Rostgaard, J. Wohlfahrt, P. K. Andersen, P. Aaby, and M. Melbye Sibship Characteristics and Risk of Allergic Rhinitis and Asthma Am. J. Epidemiol., July 15, 2005; 162(2): 125 - 132. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
W. Karmaus and C. C. Johnson Invited Commentary: Sibship Effects and a Call for a Comparative Disease Approach Am. J. Epidemiol., July 15, 2005; 162(2): 133 - 138. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
A Sadeghnejad, W Karmaus, S Davis, R J Kurukulaaratchy, S Matthews, and S H Arshad Raised cord serum immunoglobulin E increases the risk of allergic sensitisation at ages 4 and 10 and asthma at age 10 Thorax, November 1, 2004; 59(11): 936 - 942. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 B Laubereau, B Filipiak-Pittroff, A von Berg, A Grubl, D Reinhardt, H E Wichmann, S Koletzko, and for the GINI Study Group Caesarean section and gastrointestinal symptoms, atopic dermatitis, and sensitisation during the first year of life Arch. Dis. Child., November 1, 2004; 89(11): 993 - 997. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 C. S. Benn, M. Melbye, J. Wohlfahrt, B. Bjorksten, and P. Aaby Cohort study of sibling effect, infectious diseases, and risk of atopic dermatitis during first 18 months of life BMJ, May 22, 2004; 328(7450): 1223. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 S. Gibbs, H. Surridge, R. Adamson, B. Cohen, G. Bentham, and R. Reading Atopic dermatitis and the hygiene hypothesis: a case-control study Int. J. Epidemiol., February 1, 2004; 33(1): 199 - 207. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 P. Cullinan and A. Newman Taylor Asthma: environmental and occupational factors Br. Med. Bull., December 1, 2003; 68(1): 227 - 242. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 C. Cole Johnson, D. R. Ownby, E. M. Zoratti, S. Hensley Alford, L. K. Williams, and C. L. M. Joseph Environmental Epidemiology of Pediatric Asthma and Allergy Epidemiol. Rev., December 1, 2002; 24(2): 154 - 175. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
R. M. D. Bernsen and J. C. van der Wouden RE: "DOES THE SIBLING EFFECT HAVE ITS ORIGIN IN UTERO? INVESTIGATING BIRTH ORDER, CORD BLOOD IMMUNOGLOBULIN E CONCENTRATION, AND ALLERGIC SENSITIZATION AT AGE 4 YEARS" Am. J. Epidemiol., November 1, 2002; 156(9): 882 - 882. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
W. Karmaus, H. Arshad, and J. Mattes THE AUTHORS REPLY Am. J. Epidemiol., November 1, 2002; 156(9): 883 - 884. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
P. A. H. van Noord Does the sibling effect have its origin in utero? Investigating birth order, cord blood immunoglobulin E concentration, and allergic sensitization at age 4 years. Am. J. Epidemiol., November 1, 2002; 156(9): 882 - 883. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
W. Maziak RE: "DOES THE SIBLING EFFECT HAVE ITS ORIGIN IN UTERO? INVESTIGATING BIRTH ORDER, CORD BLOOD IMMUNOGLOBULIN E CONCENTRATION, AND ALLERGIC SENSITIZATION AT AGE 4 YEARS" Am. J. Epidemiol., November 1, 2002; 156(9): 882 - 882. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 T. M. McKeever, S. A. Lewis, C. Smith, and R. Hubbard The Importance of Prenatal Exposures on the Development of Allergic Disease: A Birth Cohort Study Using the West Midlands General Practice Database Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med., September 15, 2002; 166(6): 827 - 832. [Abstract] [Full Text]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 W Karmaus and C Botezan Does a higher number of siblings protect against the development of allergy and asthma? A review J Epidemiol Community Health, March 1, 2002; 56(3): 209 - 217. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|