Background
The SUNBEAM study is sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) through the Consortium for Food Allergy Research (CoFAR).
Food allergy affects about 15 million people in the United States. This includes 6 million children, most of which are diagnosed by their first birthday. Currently, there is no reliable way to predict which children will suffer from food allergies.
Atopic dermatitis (eczema) is a chronic skin disease that affects approximately 13% of U.S. children. Eczema is thought to be related to allergic conditions like food allergy and asthma. One in three children with eczema suffer from moderate to severe disease, having a major impact on the quality of life of the children and their families.
Knowing when a child develops food allergy and eczema could be a first step to predicting allergic diseases. The goal of this study is to recruit pregnant mothers, their infant and their infant’s biological father to study risk factors for the development of food allergies, eczema, and other allergic conditions.
Ultimately, this knowledge may help us identify children who are at risk for developing these diseases so that treatments may be started early to prevent or treat the diseases.
We would like to learn more about factors that put very young children at higher risk for food allergies and eczema. This study will focus on risk factors that may be present before, during, and after birth and through the age of 3 years.
Enrollment Criteria
The study will follow mothers and their child starting in the prenatal period through the child’s first three years of life. Expectant mothers who meet the following criteria may be eligible to enroll:
- Expectant Mothers are at least 18 years of age
- Plan to deliver at St. Mary's Hospital or Meriter Hospital in Madison, WI
What to Expect
Study activities will be conducted over the phone, through email, and/or around scheduled prenatal and pediatrician visits, as well as study visits at University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
Participants will be compensated for their time.
Contact Us
If you have questions regarding the SUNBEAM study, please call or email our team or fill out our survey.
Lab Cell: 608–513-4051
Email: sunbeam@medicine.wisc.edu
Survey