Bronchial Asthma and Asthmatic Bronchitis Determined by Simple Chemicals

Thirty-three subjects with bronchial asthma and 15 subjects with asthmatic bronchitis caused by occupational exposure to simple chemicals were submitted to an allergologic investigation. Essentially this consisted of skin tests, inhalation tests, determination of some types of circulating antibodies, carried out with nonirritant concentrations of simple chemicals and with usual allergens. Results indicated that bronchial asthma and asthmatic bronchitis, due to micromolecular substances, may be either irritative (28 cases) or allergic (15 cases). In five subjects the mechanism could not be established. A certain substance may give rise, in different subjects, to both types of bronchial asthma and asthmatic bronchitis mentioned above. Besides the well-known picture of bronchial asthma with reagins, the authors describe another pattern of skin and bronchial response; this pattern has many features in common with the delayed hypersensitivity.