Efficacy and Safety of Birch Pollen Immunotherapy in Local Allergic Rhinitis

Local allergic rhinitis (LAR) is still an under diagnosed and under treated disease. It is characterised by local production of IgE during natural exposure to aeroallergens. These patients have negative skin prick tests and serum-specific IgEs but have positive nasal provocation tests for aeroallergens. More than 50% of patients with chronic non-allergic rhinitis may have a problem with lack of LAR diagnosis. Misdiagnosis can lead to mistakes in the treatment as well as inefficiencies.

Besides on only local IgE-mediated reaction, allergen immunotherapy (AIT) could be a potential way of treatment such patients. However, there are only sufficient data that the AIT is effective in allergic rhinoconjunctivitis and asthma to pollens and house dust mites and some animal.

The aim of this study was to assess the safety and efficacy of AIT for birch pollen allergens in patients with local allergic rhinitis and a confirmed birch pollen allergy.

Inclusion criteria

• well document symptoms of rhinitis during birch pollen season
• positive nasal provocation test to birch
• negative results of skin prick tests to inhalant allergen including: D. pteronyssius, D. farinae, grass pollen, birch, hazel, alder Alternaria, and cat.
• negative results of serum total and allergen specific IgE against mentioned allergens.

Exclusion criteria

• diagnosis of bronchial asthma, non-allergic rhinitis (especially senile or vasomotor rhinitis) and severe non-stable diseases. All subjects were required to abstain from anti-allergy drugs and glucocorticoid nasal drops for at least 6 weeks prior to the start of the study.