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Biomedical subjects

S Parmiani

Publications and source records attributed to S Parmiani.

40 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Rush immunotherapy with sublingual administration of grass allergen extract.

A study of RUSH specific immunotherapy by sublingual route has been performed. Twenty patients have been studied suffering from rhinoconjunctivitis a/o allergic asthma to grass pollen, divided in two homogeneous groups. The first group was treated with immunotherapy, the other was used as a comparison in open. The level of specific IgG4, specific IgE, drug consumption and the symptom score were monitored. The symptom and drug scores recorded by the patients during the pollen season were significantly reduced in the group undergoing sublingual allergen administration, thus proving the clinical efficacy of this treatment. There has not been, however, a significant reduction of specific IgE, nor a significant increase of specific IgG4 towards grasses, in the treated group, monitored before and at the end of the immunotherapy.

Absorption↗

Safety and efficacy of sublingual rush immunotherapy with grass allergen extracts. A double blind study.

Thirty-four patients suffering from rhinoconjunctivitis with or without asthma due to grass pollen, were submitted to sublingual immunotherapy according to a double blind placebo controlled experimental plan; eighteen patients received the active therapy, sixteen the placebo. A rush preseasonal treatment schedule was followed in order to reach the maintenance dose in 15 days with two administrations per day; the top dose reached was then administered three times a week until the end of the pollen season. The symptoms and drugs related to rhinoconjunctivitis and asthma were recorded by means of diary cards and grass pollen counts were performed during the season. The actively treated group showed a reduction of symptoms of rhinoconjunctivitis and asthma and a lower intake of drugs for the same symptoms; all these differences resulted to be statistically significant. No patient showed local or systemic side effects of any relevance. According to these results of our study, sublingual rush immunotherapy is clinically effective and because of the ease of handling, the shortness of the treatment, the absence of relevant side effects and the high compliance of the patient can be considered as an alternative to classic injective immunotherapy in grass pollen allergic patients.

Administration, Sublingual↗

Injective versus sublingual immunotherapy in Alternaria tenuis allergic patients.

Little knowledge is available on molds either from the environmental or clinical points of view. The latter is mainly due to the lack, until recent times, of purified and standardized extracts. Injective immunotherapy, largely used for patients allergic to mites and pollens, is regarded with some concern for molds. On the other hand, mold-related allergic symptoms (i.e.,from Alternaria tenuis) have in Italy an incidence of about 5 percent, mainly in young patients. We have therefore run a pilot study comparing the efficacy and safety of injective (SIT) and sublingual (SLIT) immunotherapy by administering the same purified and standardized extract of Alternaria tenuis to a total of 23 patients for two years, according to an open experimental plan. Excellent tolerance was shown to SLIT while four (two medium-grade) side effects appeared with SIT. Clinical improvement, subjectively stated comparing symptoms (mainly rhinitis) and drug consumption before and after the therapy, confirmed by an increase in the Specific Nasal Provocation threshold, was obtained with both therapies, but with a statistically significant difference in favour of SLIT. Skin reactivity and blood Alternaria tenuis specific IgE, total IgG and IgG changed in the SIT-treated group, while no statistically significant change was shown in the SLIT-treated group. These results are in good agreement with previous reports on SIT and SLIT with other inhalant allergens (mites, grasses), and suggest the potential use of SLIT for Alternaria allergy, mainly in young patients, when there are concerns about the safety of and compliance with the traditional injective therapy.

Administration, Sublingual↗

Rush sublingual immunotherapy in Parietaria allergic patients.

Forty patients, monosensitized to Parietaria judaica with a clinical history of at least two years of rhinoconjunctivitis with or without asthma, were selected and randomly allocated in two groups. According to an open controlled experimental plan, twenty patients were submitted to sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) with a solution of purified and biologically standardized extract of Parietaria judaica, following a preseasonal rush schedule. All patients, twenty belonging to the SLIT group and twenty belonging to the control group, were allowed to take authorized rescue drugs at need. At the end of the Parietaria pollen season. 15 patients for each group resulted to have complied with the criteria of the study. SLIT tolerance turned out to be excellent as no side effects were noticed in the group under treatment. No change could be detected in specific IgE and IgG4 in either group. According to the daily symptom and drug scores registered by each patient in a diary card, the SLIT group showed a statistically significant lower symptom score (p = 0.032) and lower drug plus symptom score (p = 0.037) during the peak pollen period (May-June 1994) in comparison to the group treated only with symptomatic drugs. Moreover, 13 out of 15 patients submitted to SLIT expressed a very favourable subjective opinion about the therapy and asked to continue the same treatment the following season. According to our results, the rush SLIT schedule, followed by maintenance during the pollen season, is simple, safe and effective for Parietaria pollen allergy and showed an excellent compliance.

Administration, Sublingual↗