Practice Parameter

Environmental assessment and exposure control: a practice parameter—furry animals

Chief Editors: Jay Portnoy, MD, Kevin Kennedy, MPH, James Sublett, MD

Members of the Joint Task Force on Practice Parameters: David Bernstein, MD, Joann Blessing-Moore, MD, Linda Cox, MD, David Khan, MD, David Lang, MD, Richard Nicklas, MD, John Oppenheimer, MD, Jay Portnoy, MD, Christopher Randolph, MD, Diane Schuller, MD, Sheldon Spector, MD, Stephen A. Tilles, MD, Dana Wallace, MD

Practice Parameter Work Group: James Sublett, MD, cochair, Kevin Kennedy, MPH, cochair, Charles Barnes, PhD, David Bernstein, MD, Jonathan Bernstein, MD, Carl Grimes, Elizabeth Matsui, MD, Jeffrey D. Miller, MD, J. David Miller, PhD, Wanda Phipatanakul, MD, MS, James Seltzer, MD, P. Brock Williams, PhD

Invited Reviewers: Jack Armstrong, Hans Grönlund, PhD, Kraig W. Jacobson, MD, Jill A. Poole, MD, Matthew A Rank, MD, Megan Taylor, MD

This parameter was developed by the Joint Task Force on Practice Parameters, representing the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, and the Joint Council of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology.

The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI) and the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) have jointly accepted responsibility for establishing “Environmental Assessment and Remediation: A Practice Parameter.” This is a complete and comprehensive document at the current time. The medical environment is a changing environment, and not all recommendations will be appropriate for all patients. Because this document incorporated the efforts of many participants, no single individual, including those who served on the Joint Task Force, is authorized to provide an official AAAAI or ACAAI interpretation of these practice parameters. Any request for information about or an interpretation of these practice parameters by the AAAAI or ACAAI should be directed to the executive offices of the AAAAI, the ACAAI, and the Joint Council of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. These parameters are not designed for use by pharmaceutical companies in drug promotion.

Reprints: Joint Council of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, 50 N Brockway St, #3-3 Palatine, IL 60067.

Disclosures: The following is a summary of interests disclosed on Work Group members' Conflict of Interest Disclosure Statements (not including information concerning family member interests). Completed Conflict of Interest Disclosure Statements are available on request. Dr. Sublett is the owner of AllergyZone. Dr. Portnoy is a speaker and consultant for ThermoFisher (Phadia). Dr. Barnes is a consultant for and has received research funding from Clorox Corporation. Mr. Grimes is the owner of Healthy Habitats LLC. Dr. Matsui is speaker for Indoor BioTechnologies. Dr. Miller is the owner of Mission:Allergy Inc. Dr. Seltzer is the President of James M. Seltzer, Assoc. The other Work Group members have no conflicts to disclose. The Joint Task Force recognizes that experts in a field are likely to have interests that could come into conflict with development of a completely unbiased and objective practice parameter. To take advantage of that expertise, a process has been developed to prevent potential conflicts from influencing the final document in a negative way.

At the work group level, members who have a potential conflict of interest either do not participate in discussions concerning topics related to the potential conflict or, if they write a section on that topic, the work group completely rewrites it without their involvement to remove potential bias. In addition, the entire document is reviewed by the Joint Task Force, and any apparent bias is removed at that level. Finally, the practice parameter is sent for review both by invited reviewers and by anyone with an interest in the topic by posting the document on the websites of the ACAAI and the AAAAI.

In particular, the 2 owners of companies that produce products discussed in this practice parameter are Jeffrey D. Miller, MD, and James Sublett, MD. Dr Miller wrote an initial section on mattress encasings. This section was then completely rewritten by other members of the work group without his participation. Dr Sublett wrote a preliminary draft of the section on air filtration. That section was also subsequently rewritten by other members of the work group without his participation. Neither participant provided subsequent input into those sections.

The Joint Task Force has made a concerted effort to acknowledge all contributors to this parameter. If any contributors have been excluded inadvertently, the Task Force will ensure that appropriate recognition of such contributions is made subsequently.

Work Group Cochairs: James Sublett, MD, Family Allergy and Asthma, Louisville, Kentucky; Kevin Kennedy, MPH, Center for Environmental Health, Children's Mercy Hospitals & Clinics, Kansas City, Missouri; Joint Task Force Liaison:Jay M. Portnoy, MD, Section of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, The Children's Mercy Hospitals & Clinics Department of Pediatrics, University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Medicine, Kansas City, Missouri; Joint Task Force Members: David I. Bernstein, MD, Department of Clinical, Medicine and Environmental Health, Division of Allergy/Immunology, University of Cincinnati, College of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio; Joann Blessing-Moore, MD, Department of Immunology, Stanford University Medical Center, Palo Alto, California; Linda Cox, MD, Department of Medicine, Nova Southeastern University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Davie, Florida; David A. Khan, MD, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Texas, Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas; David M. Lang, MD, Allergy/Immunology Section, Division of Medicine, Allergy and Immunology Fellowship Training Program, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, Ohio; Richard A. Nicklas, MD, Department of Medicine, George Washington Medical Center, Washington, DC; John Oppenheimer, MD, Department of Internal Medicine, New Jersey Medical School, Pulmonary and Allergy Associates, Morristown, New Jersey; Jay M. Portnoy, MD, Section of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, The Children's Mercy Hospitals & Clinics, Department of Pediatrics, University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Medicine, Kansas City, Missouri; Christopher C. Randolph, Department of Pediatrics, Yale Affiliated Hospitals, Center for Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology Waterbury, Connecticut; Diane E. Schuller, MD, Department of Pediatrics, Pennsylvania State University Milton S. Hershey Medical College, Hershey, Pennsylvania; Sheldon L. Spector, MD, Department of Medicine, UCLA School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California; Stephen A. Tilles, MD, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, School of Medicine, Redmond, Washington; Dana Wallace MD, Department of Medicine, Nova Southeastern University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Davie, Florida; Parameter Work Group Members: Charles Barnes, PhD, Allergy Research, The Children's Mercy Hospitals & Clinics Kansas City, Missouri; David I. Bernstein, MD, Department of Clinical Medicine, Division of Immunology, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio; Jonathan A. Bernstein, MD, Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Immunology/Allergy Section, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio; Carl Grimes, CIEC, Healthy Habitats LLC, Denver, Colorado; Elizabeth Matsui, MD, MHS, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland; Jeffrey D. Miller, MD, Department of Pediatrics, New York Medical College, Valhalla, New York; J. David Miller, PhD, Department of Biochemistry, Carlton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; Wanda Phipatanakul, MD, MS, Department of Pediatrics, Division of Allergy and Immunology, Harvard Medical School, Children's Hospital Boston, Boston, Massachusetts; James M. Seltzer, MD, Reliance Medical Group, Department of Allergy and Immunology, Worcester, Massachusetts; P. Brock Williams, PhD, Department of Allergy/Immunology, University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Medicine and The Children's Mercy Hospitals & Clinics, Kansas City, Missouri; Invited Reviewers: Jack Armstrong, MD, Medical Arts Allergy, P.C., Carlisle, Pennsylvania; Hans Grönlund, PhD, Department of Immunology, Clinical Immunology and Allergy Unit Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden; Kraig W. Jacobson, MD, CPI, Oregon Allergy Associates, Allergy and Asthma Research Group, Eugene, Oregon; Jill A. Poole, MD, Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska; Matthew A Rank, MD, Division of Allergic Diseases, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota; Megan Taylor, MD, Allergy & Asthma Care, Jenkintown, Pennsylvania.