A major study of inner-city children with asthma has found no difference in the improvement experienced by children who live in homes with carpet compared to other types of flooring. In addition, no difference was found in the level of allergens measured in carpeted homes compared to homes with hard surface floors.

The Inner City Asthma Study, published in theNew England Journal of Medicine,was sponsored in part by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Center for Research Resources of the National Institutes of Health. According to published disclosure statements, none of the researchers or institutions were affiliated with or sponsored by any representative of the carpet industry.

The study followed 937 children from seven major U.S. cities over the course of a year. Contrary to researchers’ expectations, children with carpet in their bedrooms did just as well as children who had hard surface floors, according to the Carpet and Rug Institute.

“CRI’s position is based on a body of sponsored as well as independent research, but the Inner City study is significant in that it comes from the medical community,” said Werner Braun, CRI president.