SynthesisPloS one2012
Does pet ownership in infancy lead to asthma or allergy at school age? Pooled analysis of individual participant data from 11 European birth cohorts.
Synthesis in PloS one, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 102 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
102 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 402 citations in OpenAlex.
- Risk factors for allergic rhinitis in children: an umbrella review of systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Pooled it
- The relationship of domestic pet ownership with the risk of childhood asthma: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2022Pooled it
- A systematic review of associations between environmental exposures and development of asthma in children aged up to 9 years.BMJ open · 2014Pooled it
- Longitudinal trajectories of severe wheeze exacerbations from infancy to school age and their association with early-life risk factors and late asthma outcomes.Clinical and experimental allergy : journal of the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology · 2020Trial
- Cat and dog ownership during/after the first year of life and risk for sensitization and reported allergy symptoms at age 13.Immunity, inflammation and disease · 2019Trial
- Pet ownership is associated with increased risk of non-atopic asthma and reduced risk of atopy in childhood: findings from a UK birth cohort.Clinical and experimental allergy : journal of the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology · 2015Trial
- Hereditary factors and exposures in childhood associated with adult chronic rhinosinusitis-the RHINE study.European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology : official journal of the European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology - Head and Neck Surgery · 2026Article
- Association of atopic multimorbidity with childhood pet exposure and caesarean section delivery: a retrospective study from the Lifelines Cohort Study.Skin health and disease · 2026Article
- The role of dog keeping in the home microbiota and its impact on children's health.Pediatric allergy and immunology : official publication of the European Society of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology · 2026Article
- Dog exposure and subsequent asthma outcomes in children with asthma and allergy.The journal of allergy and clinical immunology. Global · 2026Article
- Our Best Friends: How Dogs Alter Indoor Air Quality.Environmental science & technology · 2026Article
- Allergy to Cats: Current Perspectives and Therapeutic Options.Clinical and translational allergy · 2026Review
- Pet Ownership Increases the Exhaled Nitric Oxide and Asthma Severity in Children With Atopic Asthma.Allergy, asthma & immunology research · 2025Article
- Pets and related allergens modify the association between early life DEHP exposure and respiratory outcomes in children.Environmental research · 2025Article
- The Impact of the Indoor Environment on Childhood Asthma.Current allergy and asthma reports · 2025Review
- Asthma Risk Prevalence and Associated Factors in Stunted Children: A Study Using Asthma Predictive Index.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2025Article
- The role of vitamin A in relation to childhood asthma with hypertension: a cross-sectional study of the NHANES database.Journal of thoracic disease · 2024Article
- Persistent cat ownership and asthma in a longitudinal study of Puerto Rican youth.Annals of allergy, asthma & immunology : official publication of the American College of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology · 2024Article
- Prevalence of asthma and wheeze among preschool and school-aged children in Africa: A meta-analysis.Public health challenges · 2024Review
- Association of serum total IgE and allergen-specific IgE with insulin resistance in adolescents: an analysis of the NHANES database.BMC pediatrics · 2024Article
42 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
29 authors at 20 institutions in 9 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo examine the associations between pet keeping in early childhood and asthma and allergies in children aged 6-10 years.
designPooled analysis of individual participant data of 11 prospective European birth cohorts that recruited a total of over 22,000 children in the 1990s. EXPOSURE DEFINITION: Ownership of only cats, dogs, birds, rodents, or cats/dogs combined during the first 2 years of life. OUTCOME DEFINITION: Current asthma (primary outcome), allergic asthma, allergic rhinitis and allergic sensitization during 6-10 years of age. DATA SYNTHESIS: Three-step approach: (i) Common definition of outcome and exposure variables across cohorts; (ii) calculation of adjusted effect estimates for each cohort; (iii) pooling of effect estimates by using random effects meta-analysis models.
resultsWe found no association between furry and feathered pet keeping early in life and asthma in school age. For example, the odds ratio for asthma comparing cat ownership with "no pets" (10 studies, 11489 participants) was 1.00 (95% confidence interval 0.78 to 1.28) (I(2) = 9%; p = 0.36). The odds ratio for asthma comparing dog ownership with "no pets" (9 studies, 11433 participants) was 0.77 (0.58 to 1.03) (I(2) = 0%, p = 0.89). Owning both cat(s) and dog(s) compared to "no pets" resulted in an odds ratio of 1.04 (0.59 to 1.84) (I(2) = 33%, p = 0.18). Similarly, for allergic asthma and for allergic rhinitis we did not find associations regarding any type of pet ownership early in life. However, we found some evidence for an association between ownership of furry pets during the first 2 years of life and reduced likelihood of becoming sensitized to aero-allergens.
conclusionsPet ownership in early life did not appear to either increase or reduce the risk of asthma or allergic rhinitis symptoms in children aged 6-10. Advice from health care practitioners to avoid or to specifically acquire pets for primary prevention of asthma or allergic rhinitis in children should not be given.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.