Zakażenia układu oddechowego a ryzyko chorób alergicznych u dzieci

At present, the significant increase of allergic diseases is one of the most important problems of modern medicine. It is necessary to take up initiatives in order to identify the reasons for this situation. The risk factors concerning incidence of allergic diseases can be divided into: individual (genetic predisposition, bronchial hyperreactivity, sex, race) and environmental (diet, social and economic status, family size, allergens, chemical environmental factors, tobacco, viral and bacterial infections). In the 1989 Strachan's hygiene hypothesis was declared. In the light of this hypothesis there is an inverse correlation between infections and allergy evolution. Nowadays, the relationship between infections and allergy remains a vital problem. A comprehensive review of current opinions, on the role of viral and bacterial infections in allergy development is presented. It is still too early to determine the role of infections in allergic prevalence. In our opinion the basis for understanding immunologic reactions in response to infection is evaluation of lymphocyte T function.