Effect of Veramyst and Olopatadine 0.2% Opthalmic Solution on Allergy Symptoms

After treatment, each participant was subjected to a diluent (control) challenge in one eye and was asked to rate 2 eye symptoms (watery and itchy) according to the following scale: 0=none, 1=mild, 2=moderate, 3=severe. The participant was then exposed to 3 doses of an antigen challenge and was asked to similarly rate severity of watery and itchy eye symptoms after each dose. Diluent challenge scores were subtracted from the scores recorded after each dose. This process was repeated in the other eye. The outcome is the total of the score differences (i.e. score after each dose subtracted by diluent challenge score) summed across doses, symptoms (watery and itchy), and eyes (left and right). Thus, each participant's total score is an integer value ranging from -36 to 36.

After treatment, each participant was subjected to a diluent (control) challenge in one nostril and was asked to rate nasal symptoms (congestion, rhinorrhea, and itchy nose/throat) according to the following scale: 0=none, 1=mild, 2=moderate, 3=severe. The participant was then exposed to 3 doses of an antigen challenge and was asked to similarly rate severity of nasal symptoms after each dose. Diluent challenge scores were subtracted from the scores recorded after each dose. This process was repeated in the other nostril. The outcome is the total number of score differences (i.e. score after each dose subtracted by diluent challenge score) summed across doses, symptoms (congestion, rhinorrhea, and itchy nose/throat), and nostrils (left and right). Thus, each participant's total score is an integer value ranging from -36 to 36.

Histamines are simple chemical substances produced by immune system cells when reacting to an antigen in response to foreign invaders like germs and bacteria.

Histamine in nasal lavages was measured using a histamine enzyme immunoassay kit market by SPI-BIo, Bertin Pharma (Montigny le Bretonneux, France). The limit of detection of the assay is 0.4 nM, and levels below the detection limit were arbitrarily assigned a value of 0.2 nM. Samples that yielded values above the upper detection limit of the assay were diluted and reassayed.

For each patient, histamine levels recorded after the diluent challenge were subtracted from histamine levels recorded after each of the three nasal challenges. These differences were added across challenges, yielding the total change in histamine level reported in this outcome for each patient.

Tryptase is an enzyme that is released, along with histamine and other chemicals, from mast cells when they are activated, often as part of an allergic immune response. Tryptase in nasal lavages was measured using the ImmunoCap tryptase assay, by Phadia (Uppsala, Sweden). The limit of detection of the assay is 1.0 ng/mL, and levels below this value were arbitrarily assigned a value of 0.5 ng/mL.

For each patient, tryptase levels recorded after the diluent challenge were subtracted from tryptase levels recorded after each of the three nasal challenges. These differences were added across challenges, yielding the total change in tryptase level reported in this outcome for each patient.

The percentage of eosinophils among white blood cells was determined under light microscopy at 1000x magnification, and the total number of eosinophils in each lavage was then calculated. The specimens that had no eosinophils identified on differential counting despite adequate cells on the smear were assigned a number that corresponded to the lowest number of eosinophils on a slide where the number could be counted. That number was 33 total eosinophils.