Adherence to the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) checklist in articles published in EAACI Journals: a bibliographic study.

Research data derived from observational studies are accumulating quickly in the field of allergy and immunology and a large amount of observational studies are published every year. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the adherence to the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) checklist by papers published in the three European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology journals, during the period 2009-2018. To this end, we conducted a bibliographic study of up to eight randomly selected papers per year per Journal. Our literature search resulted in 223 papers. Among those, 80, 80 and 63 records were from Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, Allergy and Clinical and Translational Allergy, respectively; the latter was published only from 2011 on. Prospective, case-control, and cross-sectional designs were described in 88, 43, and 92 papers, respectively. Full reporting of all STROBE items was present in 47.4%, 45.6%, and 41.2% for the cohort, cross-sectional, and case-control studies, respectively. Generally, no time trend in adherence of reporting STROBE items was observed, apart from reporting funding, which increased from 60% in 2009/2010 to more than 90% in 2018. We identified a cluster of STROBE items with low proportions of full reporting constituted by the items on reporting study design in the title and methods, variables types along with their measurement/assessment, bias and confounding, study size, and grouping of variables. It appears that the STROBE checklist is a suitable tool in observational allergy epidemiology. However, adherence to the STROBE checklist appeared suboptimal.

„CHildhood Allergy and tolerance: bioMarkers and Predictors” (CHAMP) -A call for prediction and quality of life

Background: Allergic diseases are the most prevalent chronic childhood diseases resulting in a massive societal and economic burden for the community and a significant reduction of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) for affected families. The project CHAMP (CHildhood Allergy and tolerance: bioMarkers and Predictors) was funded in 2017 by the German Federal Ministry for Education and Research. Methods: CHAMP investigates the determinants of different allergic diseases from birth to adolescence to identify clinically relevant biomarkers predicting onset, progression, remission and severity. Data on HRQoL and patient’s needs and requirements were collected, supported by the German Asthma and Allergy Association (DAAB). Using validated questionnaires and outpatient visits, eight subprojects analysed allergic diseases in epidemiological or clinical cohorts (more than 2500 children/adolescents), sampling numerous biomaterials to assess omics on several levels. Murine models disentangled underlying mechanisms of early tolerance, translating findings from the cohorts to models and vice versa. Results: The DAAB survey, including 851 participants, showed that 83% were interested in prediction of the course of different current allergic diseases and future manifestation. 86% of participants considered doctor’s specialized training and their education as highly important, over 70% chose research for allergy understanding and prevention as critical. CHAMP addresses these needs. Common SOPs have been established and recruitment is ongoing. Conclusion: The DAAB patient survey confirmed the critical need for translational allergy research. CHAMP envisions to predict onset, tolerance and remission of allergic diseases and to identify disease sub-phenotypes for future development of preventive strategies and novel avenues for therapeutic options.

Highlights and recent developments in allergic diseases in EAACI journals (2019)

The European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) owns three journals: Allergy, Pediatric Allergy and Immunology and Clinical and Translational Allergy. One of the major goals of EAACI is to support health promotion in which prevention of allergy and asthma plays a critical role and to disseminate the knowledge of allergy to all stakeholders including the EAACI junior members. There was substantial progress in 2019 in the identification of basic mechanisms of allergic and respiratory disease and the translation of these mechanisms into clinics. Better understanding of molecular and cellular mechanisms, efforts for the development of biomarkers for disease prediction, novel prevention and intervention studies, elucidation of mechanisms of multimorbidities, entrance of new drugs in the clinics as well as recently completed phase three clinical studies and publication of a large number of allergen immunotherapy studies and meta-analyses have been the highlights of the last year.

Highlights and recent developments in skin allergy and related diseases in EAACI journals (2018)

The European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) supports three journals: Allergy, Paediatric Allergy and Immunology as well as Clinical and Translational Allergy. The major goals of EAACI include (i) supporting health promotion in which the prevention of allergy and asthma plays a critical role and (ii) disseminating the knowledge of allergy to all stakeholders including the EAACI junior members. Substantial progress was made in 2018 in the identification of basic mechanisms of atopic dermatitis and urticaria and the translation of these mechanisms into clinics. Many large epidemiologic studies and meta-analyses have been the highlights of the last year.