Persistent AR (persistent + ar)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Allergic rhinitis in the child and associated comorbidities

PEDIATRIC ALLERGY AND IMMUNOLOGY, Issue 1-Part-II 2010
Tania Sih
Sih T, Mion O. Allergic rhinitis in the child and associated comorbidities. Pediatr Allergy Immunol 2010: 21: e107,e113. © 2009 John Wiley & Sons A/S Allergic rhinitis (AR) typically presents after the second year of life, but the exact prevalence in early life is unknown. AR affects 10,30% of the population, with the greatest frequency found in children and adolescents. It appears that the prevalence has increased in the pediatric population. As the childs' immune system develops between the 1st and 4th yr of life, those with an atopic predisposition begin to express allergic disease with a clear Th2 response to allergen exposure, resulting in symptoms. In pediatric AR, two or more seasons of pollen exposure are generally needed for sensitization, so allergy testing to seasonal allergens (trees, grasses, and weeds) should be conducted after the age of 2 or 3 years. Sensitization to perennial allergens (animals, dust mites, and cockroaches) may manifest several months after exposure. Classification of AR includes measurement of frequency and duration of symptoms. Intermittent AR is defined as symptoms for <4 days/wk or <4 consecutive weeks. Persistent AR is defined as occurring for more than 4 days/wk and more than 4 consecutive weeks. AR is associated with impairments in quality of life, sleep disorders, emotional problems, and impairment in activities such as work and school productivity and social functioning. AR can also be graded in severity , either mild or moderate/severe. There are comorbidities associated with AR. The chronic effects of the inflammatory process affect lungs, ears, growth, and others. AR can induce medical complications, learning problems and sleep-related complaints, such as obstructive sleep apnea syndrome and chronic and acute sinusitis, acute otitis media, serous otitis media, and aggravation of adenoidal hypertrophy and asthma. [source]


Pharmacotherapy of allergic rhinitis: a pharmaco-economic approach

ALLERGY, Issue 1 2009
S. Simoens
This article reports on a systematic literature review of the costs of allergic rhinitis (AR), the economic value of pharmacotherapy of AR, and the factors affecting costs and economic value of pharmacotherapy. Included studies had carried out a cost-of-illness analysis, cost analysis, cost-effectiveness, cost-utility or cost-benefit analysis. Allergic rhinitis imposes a substantial economic burden on society, with indirect costs of productivity loss being larger than the direct healthcare costs. Cost estimates were biased because of difficulties of diagnosis; exclusion of patients who do not seek healthcare; exclusion of over-the-counter medication; difficulties in estimating productivity loss. There is limited evidence on costs of seasonal/perennial and intermittent/persistent AR. Little is known of the economic value of pharmacotherapy of AR, although levocetirizine appears to be cost-effective as compared with placebo. Economic evaluations suffered limitations from small sample sizes, short trial duration, lack of standardized effectiveness measure, restricted scope of costs. Finally, the economic value of pharmacotherapy of AR is influenced by the perspective of the economic evaluation, relative effectiveness and costs of available drugs, patient compliance with treatment. [source]


Caring for patients with allergic rhinitis

JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF NURSE PRACTITIONERS, Issue 6 2007
AE-C Nurse Practitioner, APRN-C, Certified Asthma Educator, Clinical Assistant Professor2), Mary Lou Hayden MS
Abstract Purpose: Allergic rhinitis (AR) affects up to 40 million Americans, with an estimated cost of $2.7 billion per annum. This review discusses several therapeutic options that reduce the symptoms of AR, including allergen avoidance, antihistamines, intranasal corticosteroids (INS), leukotriene receptor antagonists, and immunotherapy. Data sources: The articles included in this review were retrieved by a search of Medline literature on the subjects of AR, antihistamines, INS, leukotriene antagonists, and immunotherapy, as well as current published guidelines for the treatment of AR. Conclusions: Allergen avoidance is recommended for all patients prior to pharmacologic therapy. Oral and nasal H1 -antihistamines are recommended to alleviate the mild and intermittent symptoms of AR, and INS are recommended as the first-line treatment choice for mild persistent and more moderate-to-severe persistent AR. Implications for practice: There are a number of different types of therapy for the management of AR; with so many options available, successful tailoring of treatment to suit individual requirements is realistically achievable. [source]


Anti-immunoglobulin E treatment with omalizumab in allergic diseases: an update on anti-inflammatory activity and clinical efficacy

CLINICAL & EXPERIMENTAL ALLERGY, Issue 4 2005
S. T. Holgate
Summary Omalizumab is a humanized monoclonal anti-IgE antibody developed for the treatment of allergic disease, with established efficacy in patients with moderate-to-severe allergic asthma and in patients with intermittent (seasonal) and persistent (perennial) allergic rhinitis (AR). Omalizumab is known to result in a marked reduction in serum levels of free IgE and down-regulation of IgE receptors on circulating basophils. Recent work has shed further light on its mechanism of action, showing significant and profound reductions in tissue (nasal and bronchial) eosinophils and in bronchial IgE+ cells (mast cells), as well as T cells and B cells. Omalizumab treatment was also shown to be associated with down-regulation of IgE receptors on circulating (precursor) dendritic cells, suggesting that blocking IgE may inhibit more chronic aspects of allergic inflammation involving T cell activation. Further work with omalizumab demonstrated it to have important benefits in patients with poorly controlled asthma despite high-dose inhaled corticosteroid therapy, and analysis of clinical data suggests that the patients who are the best ,responders' to anti-IgE treatment are those with asthma at the more severe end of the spectrum. Notably, systemic anti-IgE therapy with omalizumab has been shown to improve symptoms, quality of life and disease control (asthma exacerbations) in patients with concomitant asthma and persistent AR. These impressive clinical data and the studies elucidating the anti-inflammatory profile of omalizumab also serve to emphasize the fundamental importance of IgE in the pathogenesis of allergic diseases. [source]