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Effect of specific immunotherapy with house dust mite extract on the bronchial responsiveness of paediatric asthma patients.
- Source :
-
Clinical and experimental allergy : journal of the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology [Clin Exp Allergy] 1999 Feb; Vol. 29 (2), pp. 176-81. - Publication Year :
- 1999
-
Abstract
- Background and Objective: Allergic asthma is common in children, and house dust mite (HDM) is an important source of perennial allergens. Bronchial hyperresponsiveness is a functional hallmark of asthma. Specific immunotherapy (SIT) with HDM extracts were shown to decrease symptoms, but its effect on bronchial responsiveness, as measured by non-pharmacological challenges, has not been evaluated.<br />Methods: Twenty-six paediatric asthma patients allergic to HDM participated in this study. Fourteen patients received SIT with a HDM extract (Alavac, Bencard) for 2 years, and 12 served as controls. Bronchial responsiveness was assessed non-pharmacologically by cold dry air challenge (CACh) before and 3, 6, 12 and 24 months after SIT, and 12 months after termination of SIT.<br />Results: After 24 months, the SIT group showed a statistically significant reduction of the mean CACh-induced changes of both forced expiratory volume in one second (-21.8+/-2.7% vs. -13.7+/-2.4%; P = 0.03) and maximal expiratory flow at 25% remaining vital capacity (-48.9+/-4.9% vs. -27.9+/-6.2%; P = 0.01). In contrast, no significant changes of bronchial responsiveness were observed in the control group. In the SIT group more patients lost their bronchial hyperresponsiveness than in the control group (6/14 vs. 1/12; P<0.05). One year after terminating SIT, the treatment group showed a tendency towards returning bronchial hyperresponsiveness.<br />Conclusion: These results demonstrate that during 2 years of SIT there was a reduction of bronchial hyperresponsiveness in HDM-allergic paediatric asthma patients.
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 0954-7894
- Volume :
- 29
- Issue :
- 2
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- Clinical and experimental allergy : journal of the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 10051720
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2222.1999.00391.x