Figure 1.
The characteristics of the study population according to the categories of selected potential risk factors (N=1,080)_
| Category | Variable | Total Ncat (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Demography | Age | |
| 18-39 | 123 (11.4) | |
| 40-64 | 507 (46.9) | |
| ≥65 | 450 (41.7) | |
| Sex | ||
| Female | 163 (15.1) | |
| Male | 917 (84.9) | |
| Education | ||
| Lower | 651 (60.3) | |
| Upper | 429 (39.7) | |
| BMI | ||
| 18.5-24.9 | 295 (27.3) | |
| 25-29.9 | 547 (50.7) | |
| ≥30 | 238 (22.0) | |
| Environmental exposure | Smoking status | |
| Yes | 365 (33.8) | |
| No | 715 (66.2) | |
| Beekeeping status | ||
| Hobby | 1058 (98.0) | |
| Professional | 22 (2.0) | |
| Type of beekeeping | ||
| Stationary | 894 (82.8) | |
| Other | 186 (17.2) | |
| Beekeeping duration (yr) | ||
| ≤10 | 356 (33.0) | |
| >11 | 724 (67.0) | |
| No. of active working days in a week | ||
| 1-2 | 843 (78.1) | |
| ≥3 | 237 (21.9) | |
| Use of protective equipment | ||
| Some elements | 629 (58.2) | |
| Complete outfit | 252 (23.3) | |
| None | 199 (18.5) | |
| Beekeeping among | ||
| FDRa and FMb | ||
| Bee contact | 825 (76.4) | |
| No bee contact | 255 (23.6) | |
| Host predisposition to SAR | Symptoms when working at hives | |
| Nasal | 17 (1.6) | |
| Other | 9 (0.8) | |
| None | 1054 (97.6) | |
| Personal history of LLR | ||
| Yes | 175 (16.2) | |
| No | 905 (83.8) | |
| Personal history of atopic disease | ||
| Yes | 126 (11.7) | |
| No | 954 (88.3) | |
| Personal history of other allergic diseases | ||
| Yes | 89 (8.2) | |
| No | 991 (91.8) | |
| History of AR to bee venom among FDRa | ||
| Yes | 174 (16.1) | |
| No | 906 (83.9) | |
| History of atopic disease among FDRa | ||
| Yes | 91 (8.4) | |
| No | 989 (91.6) | |
| History of other allergic diseases among FDRa | ||
| Yes | 32 (3.0) | |
| No | 1048 (97.0) |
The estimated lifetime prevalence of self-reported first systemic allergic reaction to bee venom in 1,080 beekeepers and graded for severity according to Mueller_
| Grade | Ncat (%) | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| SAR I | 27 (26.5) | 24.5-28.5 |
| SAR II | 29 (28.4) | 28.4-28.4 |
| SAR III | 26 (25.5) | 23.5-27.5 |
| SAR IV | 20 (19.6) | 17.4-21.4 |
| TOTAL | 102 (100.0) |
Multiple logistic regression analysis of the overall lifetime prevalence of self-reported first systemic allergic reaction to bee venom associated with risk factors among the Slovenian population of beekeepers (N=1,080)_
| Risk factor | Variable | OR | 95% CI | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| lower | upper | ||||
| Estimated number of bee stings per season | >51 | 1 | |||
| ≤50 | 5.274 | 3.250 | 8.559 | <0.001 | |
| Demography | Agea | ||||
| ≥65 | 1 | ||||
| 18-39 | 1.477 | 1.160 | 1.881 | <0.002 | |
| 40-64 | 1.270 | 1.055 | 1.527 | <0.011 | |
| Sexa | |||||
| Female | 1 | ||||
| Male | 1.712 | 1.007 | 2.911 | 0.047 | |
| Environmental exposure | Beekeeping duration (yr) | ||||
| >11 | 1 | ||||
| ≤10 | 1.235 | 0.759 | 2.010 | 0.395 | |
| Host predisposition to SAR | Symptoms when working at hives | ||||
| None | 1 | ||||
| Nasal | 9.693 | 2.469 | 38.045 | 0.001 | |
| Personal history of LLR | |||||
| No | 1 | ||||
| Yes | 20.654 | 4.747 | 89.877 | <0.001 | |
| Personal history of atopic disease | |||||
| No | 1 | ||||
| Physician-confirmed asthma | 1.288 | 0.707 | 2.346 | 0.408 | |
| Personal history of other allergic diseases | |||||
| No | 1 | ||||
| Yes | 1.664 | 0.841 | 3.291 | 0.143 | |