Environmental and individual factors associated with protection and predisposition to autoimmune diseases

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to correlate possible predisposing and protective factors involved with autoimmune diseases (ADs) in a Brazilian microregion.


Methods: This case-control study recorded 362 cases of ADs prevalent in the Águas Formosas microregion, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, between January and December 2016, through the application of a questionnaire. Overall, 724 controls were randomly selected according to gender and age. Logistic regression was used to calculate the adjusted odds ratio (OR), confidence interval, and P-value to compare the strength of association between the variables of interest assessed.


Results: Individuals with Graves’ disease (OR: 11.9977), followed by rheumatoid arthritis (RA), psoriasis, lupus, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (HT), and vitiligo, were strongly associated with the risk of developing the disease after the hepatitis B vaccine. Having consumed cow milk before 6 months of life was a factor associated only with psoriasis (OR: 0.3321) and RA (OR: 0.2880). Type 1 diabetes patients were associated only with surgical procedures (OR: 0.1160), just as physical and psychological traumas were associated only with vitiligo (OR: 5.9848). Contact with chemicals was more related to vitiligo (OR: 0.7142), RA, psoriasis, lupus, and thyroiditis. Physical exercise was the most significant protective factor for vitiligo (OR: 0.4904), followed by HT, RA, psoriasis, and lupus; and the consumption of filtered water with candles was a protective factor for vitiligo (OR: 0.3325).


Conclusion: The associations suggest that predisposing and protective factors for ADs play a pivotal role in their onset, enabling health management, control, and intervention of this population.

Keywords:

Autoimmune diseases behavioral factors biological agents chemical agents dietary agents environmental factors molecular mimicry
Júnior, D. S. T. (2020). Environmental and individual factors associated with protection and predisposition to autoimmune diseases. International Journal of Health Sciences, 14(6), 13–23. Retrieved from https://pub.qu.edu.sa/index.php/journal/article/view/5279
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