December 2019

Allergic rhinitis is a condition that affects quality of life and has a high economic burden. Allergen immunotherapy (AIT) may be effective in seasonal and perennial allergic rhinitis, depending on the intensity and duration of pollen exposure. The European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) task force evaluated pollen and symptom data from German and aimed at extrapolating these data in other European geographical areas such as Austria, Finland and France and assess their suitability for AIT and clinical support.

They used data from 23 pollen monitoring stations from Austria, Finland and France from 2014-2016. Afterwards, they studied the correlation between birch and grass pollen concentration during the birch and grass pollen season defined by the EAACI criteria and total nasal symptoms and medication scores reported by allergic rhinitis patients.

The analysis showed that there is a correlation of peak pollen period start and end and pollen-induced symptom loads reported by allergic rhinitis patients during birch and grass pollen season.

This task force concluded that the EAACI definitions on pollen season for both birch and grass are also valid for Austria, Finland and France, which may be of interest of use in clinical trials on AIT and also in daily clinical routine.

The POLLAR project (Impact of Air POLLution in Asthma and Rhinitis) assesses if there are associations between major air pollutants and allergic rhinitis control. Former studies have suggested an interaction between air pollution and pollen exposure with an impact on symptoms.

This study included 3323 participants from Northern and Central Europe who recorded the daily impact of allergic symptoms in a validated mobile tool for rhinitis management using visual analogue scales during 2017 and 2018. Pollutant levels were assesses using a system for integrated modelling of atmospheric composition and pollens were assessed by regions using Google Trends. Generalized estimating equation models were used to account for repeated measures per user, adjusting for gender, age, treatment and country. Analyses were stratified by pollen seasons to investigate interactions between air pollutants and pollen exposure.

Stronger associations between uncontrolled rhinitis and pollutants were observed during the grass pollen season. Also, days with uncontrolled allergic rhinitis increased by 25% for an interquartile range increase in pollutants levels during the grass pollen season.

The MASK-POLLAR study concluded that there may be a relationship between uncontrolled allergic rhinitis and air pollution and that this relationship is modified in the grass pollen season.

Allergic rhinitis is the most increasing allergic respiratory disorder. It affects 10-20% of the population and is clinically identified by symptoms such as nasal discharge, itching, sneezing and nasal congestion. The objectives of this study were to determine if serum IgE and eosinophil levels have a correlation with allergic rhinitis. A total of 155 participants (113 patients and 42 healthy controls, 81 women) of different ages (1 month – 75 years old) were included in this retrospective study. Blood samples were collected from all participants and analysed to determine serum IgE and eosinophil levels. A Pearson’s correlation was performed to establish a relationship between serum log IgE and eosinophil levels. The statistical analysis of the samples demonstrated that the mean values of serum found that these were higher in participants with allergic rhinitis than in healthy controls. Also, in participants with allergic rhinits, a predominance in men was seen in mean serum log IgE levels, whereas women predominance was seen in mean eosinophil counts. A small positive correlation was established between serum log IgE and eosinophil levels. This study showed that elevated serum IgE and eosinophil levels were observed in patients with allergic rhinitis with predominance in men and younger age group.

Serum IgE and eosinophils can serve as a simple, non-invasive and reliable tool for allergic rhinitis diagnosis.

Allergic rhinitis is a very common condition, affecting approximately 113 million in Europe and 30 to 60 million in the United States. Allergic rhinitis treatment is usually symptomatic, nevertheless it has both high economic burden and impact in the quality of life of patients.

Allergen immunotherapy (AIT) is a well-established and proven effective treatment of allergic rhinitis because it treats its symptoms but also the underlying cause of allergic rhinitis by stimulating immunologic changes that produce long-term allergen-specific tolerance.

The investigator produced a literature review on AIT and concluded that besides reducing symptoms, it improves overall quality of life of patients with allergic rhinitis. The 2 most commonly prescribed AIT routes are SCIT (subcutaneous immunotherapy) and SLIT (sublingual immunotherapy), which have comparable efficacy. The safety profile of SLIT is superior to SCIT, but both have been shown to have poor adherence in real-life studies. AIT has shown to prevent the progression of allergic rhinitis to asthma and may provide long-term clinical benefits after discontinuation of medications, which can translate into cost savings, when compared to standard treatment. However, more research is needed.