SELECTED ARTICLES FROM THE RECENT LITERATURE 2006

9/29/06

Sublingual immunotherapy in pediatric allergic rhinitis

Summary
Background - There has been increasing use of sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) for the treatment of allergic disorders in Europe. What is the efficacy of SLIT in children?

Findings - Penagos et al of the Univ of Genoa did a meta-analysis of randomized, placebo-controlled, double blind trials of SLIT in the treatment of allergic rhinitis (AR) in patients ages 3-18 years. In 10 studies of 484 patients which met selection criteria, there was significantly less AR symptoms (p=0.02) and medication use (p=0.03) after active SLIT vs after placebo SLIT.The efficacy of SLIT was greater when this therapy was carried out for more than 18 months and involved pollen rather than dust mite extracts.

Reference
Ann Allergy, Asthma, Immunol 2006;97:141-8

Editor's Comments
These findings indicate a modest degree of efficacy of SLIT in the treatment of AR in a pediatric/adolescent population. It would be of considerable interest to see a comparison of the efficacy of SLIT vs efficacy of traditional allergy immunotherapy by subcutaneous injections in a similar pediatric/adolescent population. Such comparisons have already been carried out in adults.

 

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