Prevalence of sensitization to Cupressus semper irens: a 4-year retrospective study

In the last few years Cupressus semper irens has been identified as the cause of an increasing number of cases of late winter-early spring pollinosis in Mediterranean countries. We conducted a 4-year retrospective study of a large group of subjects with documented allergic respiratory disease in order to determine the prevalence, clinical significance and annual rate of sensitization to C. semper irens pollen. Anamnestic data and skin prick tests ŽSPT. with common aeroallergens and C. semper irens extract were collected from 1397 subjects Ž712 male and 685 female. resident in Latium, a region in central Italy, with complaints related to upper- or lower-respiratory-tract disorders or conjunctival disease. Two hundred and forty-three subjects Ž17.4%. showed positive results to C. semper irens extract; 47 Ž19.3%. of them were monosensitized. The annual sensitization rate of SPT positivity to C. semper irens varied from 7.2% in 1995 to 22% in 1998. All the subjects monosensitized to cypress pollen had symptoms from January through April. Our study suggests that sensitivity to C. semper irens is responsible for respiratory symptoms in an increasing percentage of subjects. Further studies are needed to determine its frequency at the national level