Rinitis alérgica en pediatría: recomendaciones para su diagnóstico y tratamiento / Allergic rhinitis in pediatrics: recommendations for diagnosis and treatment

La rinitis alérgica (RA) es una de las enfermedades crónicas más frecuentes de la infancia. Sin embargo, permanece subdiagnosticada y subtratada. Su prevalencia ha aumentado en los últimos años y varía del 2 % al 25 %. Los síntomas de la RA incluyen estornudos, prurito, rinorrea y congestión nasal. Un correcto diagnóstico y tratamiento de la RA y sus comorbilidades, tales como rinosinusitis con o sin poliposis nasal, conjuntivitis, otitis media, asma bronquial e infecciones del tracto respiratorio, son importantes para reducir el impacto negativo en la afectación de la calidad de vida del paciente y sus familiares, y los gastos sanitarios que ocasiona. La inmunoterapia alérgeno específica, en pacientes correctamente seleccionados, previene nuevas sensibilizaciones y reduce la hiperreactividad bronquial asociada a la RA. Considerando todos estos factores, el Comité Nacional de Alergia de la Sociedad Argentina de Pediatría propone recomendaciones basadas en la evidencia actual.

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is one of the most common chronic diseases in children. However, it remains underdiagnosed and undertreated. Its prevalence has increased in recent years and varies from 2 to 25 %. Symptoms include sneezing, itching, runny nose, and nasal congestion. A correct diagnosis and treatment of AR and its comorbidities such as rhinosinusitis with or without nasal polyposis, conjunctivitis, otitis media, bronchial asthma and respiratory tract infections, are important to reduce the negative impact on the quality of life of the patient and their relatives, and in medical costs. Specific allergen immunotherapy, in correctly selected patients, prevents new sensitizations and reduces bronchial hyperreactivity associated with AR. Taking into account all these reasons, the National Allergy Committee of the Sociedad Argentina de Pediatría proposes current evidence based recommendations

[Allergic rhinitis in pediatrics: recommendations for diagnosis and treatment]. / Rinitis alérgica en pediatría: recomendaciones para su diagnóstico y tratamiento.

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is one of the most common chronic diseases in children. However, it remains underdiagnosed and undertreated. Its prevalence has increased in recent years and varies from 2 to 25 %. Symptoms include sneezing, itching, runny nose, and nasal congestion. A correct diagnosis and treatment of AR and its comorbidities such as rhinosinusitis with or without nasal polyposis, conjunctivitis, otitis media, bronchial asthma and respiratory tract infections, are important to reduce the negative impact on the quality of life of the patient and their relatives, and in medical costs. Specific allergen immunotherapy, in correctly selected patients, prevents new sensitizations and reduces bronchial hyperreactivity associated with AR. Taking into account all these reasons, the National Allergy Committee of the Sociedad Argentina de Pediatría proposes current evidence based recommendations.

La rinitis alérgica (RA) es una de las enfermedades crónicas más frecuentes de la infancia. Sin embargo, permanece subdiagnosticada y subtratada. Su prevalencia ha aumentado en los últimos años y varía del 2 % al 25 %. Los síntomas de la RA incluyen estornudos, prurito, rinorrea y congestión nasal. Un correcto diagnóstico y tratamiento de la RA y sus comorbilidades, tales como rinosinusitis con o sin poliposis nasal, conjuntivitis, otitis media, asma bronquial e infecciones del tracto respiratorio, son importantes para reducir el impacto negativo en la afectación de la calidad de vida del paciente y sus familiares, y los gastos sanitarios que ocasiona. La inmunoterapia alérgeno específica, en pacientes correctamente seleccionados, previene nuevas sensibilizaciones y reduce la hiperreactividad bronquial asociada a la RA. Considerando todos estos factores, el Comité Nacional de Alergia de la Sociedad Argentina de Pediatría propone recomendaciones basadas en la evidencia actual.

Efficacy of allergen-blocker mechanical barrier gel on symptoms and quality of life in patients with allergic rhinitis.

PROPOSE: Allergic rhinitis (AR) is a very common, chronic and global health problem. In the last two decades, the efficiency of barrier-enforcing measures in AR has been investigated. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the effect of allergen-blocker mechanical barrier gel (MBG) (AlerjiSTOP®) treatment on symptoms and quality of life score (QoLS) in patients with seasonal and perennial allergic rhinitis. METHODS: A single-center, prospective study was conducted between January 2017 and May 2018. Patients diagnosed with allergic rhinitis with a visual analogue scale (VAS) of 5 or higher (moderate/severe) were enrolled in the study. Patients were evaluated in terms of VAS, nasal symptom score (NSS), ocular symptom score (OSS), total symptom score (TSS) and QoLS at baseline, 1 week and 1 month of MBG treatment. RESULTS: A total of 83 patients with AR were enrolled in the study. Clinical and laboratory examinations showed that 50 (60.2%) patients were mono-sensitized. Allergen-blocker mechanical barrier gel treatment was performed as monotherapy in 22 (26.5%) patients. Median VAS, NSS, OSS and TSS decreased from 7 to 4, 8 to 3, 4 to 0 and 12 to 4, respectively (p < 0.0001). Correlation analysis revealed positive correlations between lower pediatric rhinoconjunctivitis quality of life questionnaire scores for patients under 12 years of age and decrease in VAS, NSS and TSS (r = 0.380, p = 0.008; r = 0.544, p < 0.0001; r = 0.543, p < 0.0001). Positive correlations were detected between lower rhinoconjunctivitis quality of life questionnaire (self-administered) scores for patients ≥ 12 years of age and decrease in VAS, NSS, OSS and TSS (r = 0.703, p < 0.0001; r = 0.465, p = 0.005; r = 0.526, p = 0.001; r = 0.624, p < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: In conclusion, we found significant decrease in all symptom scores and improvement in QoLS of patients treated with MBG as monotherapy and combination therapy.

Study toward resolving the controversy over the definition of allergic fungal rhinosinusitis.

Dysbiosis of the microbiome on the airway mucosa leads to the development of chronic inflammatory and allergic disorders. The aim of this study was to consider the potential diagnostic criteria for allergic fungal rhinosinusitis (AFRS) and nonallergic fungal rhinosinusitis (FRS), and the role of fungal presence in an environment for the development of AFRS. In this study, 136 patients were divided into two groups: patients with positive specific immunoglobulin E (sIgE) and fungal finding (AFRS group), and patients with negative sIgE and positive fungal finding (FRS group). The study design included: anamnesis data, sIgE, eosinophil count and skin-prick test, rhinology and computerized tomography (CT) observation and mycological finding. Our results showed: (i) the prevalence in Serbia is: AFRS 1.3%, FRS 2.8%; (ii) 30.4% patients with sIgE+ had more often severe and recurrent chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) (P = .005) and the presence of polyps (P = .025); (iii) 46.4% patients with sIgE+ had positive fungi on the sinonasal mucosa and were considered as AFRS; (iv) patients with AFRS had more frequent asthma (P = .024) and chronicity of CRS >10 years (P = .000). The persistent fungal presence and prolonged duration of CRS could be a silent threat for the progression of inflammation and development of FRS. Lavage with hypertonic-NaCl should be included in the everyday hygiene routine in an effort to decrease fungal load and antigenic exposure. The presence of allergological parameters and better response to corticosteroid therapy in AFRS patients should be considered as crucial diagnostic criteria for AFRS.

[Comparison of PedsQL™4.0 and RQLQ scales in the assessment of the quality of life in children with allergic rhinitis].

Objective:To explore the value of PedsQL™4.0 and RQLQ scales in assessment of quality of life(QOL) in children with allergic rhinitis(AR). Method:A prospective trial was conducted to survey the QOL status of 71 AR clinical patients, 68 chronic pharyngitis(CP) clinical patients and 62 healthy individuals by generic questionnaire PedsQL™4.0 and disease specific questionnaire rhinoconjunetivitis quality of life questionnaire(RQLQ) respectively. The correlation between PedsQL™4.0 and RQLQ were analyzed．All the results were analyzed statistically. Result:①By the assessment of PedsQL™4.0 the scores of Social functioning and School functioning domains in AR clinical patients(the same as follow. the scores were 82.8±19.7，64.0±24.6 respectively) were less than those(86.2±18.58, 4.9±18.7) in healthy individuals(P<0.05);while the scores of Physical health and Emotional functioning domains in AR clinical patients(88.3±20.3，75.4±22.4 respectively) were similar with those(89.1±17.7，75.9±22.0) in CP clinical patients(P>0.05)．②By the assessment of RQLQ in AR patients, the nasal symptom and practical problem domains got the highest scores(2.54±1.37,2.70±1.29 respectively).③According to the assessment of the correlation between PedsQL™4.0 and RQLQ, the correlation was weak(r=-0.199--0.468，P<0.05)． Conclusion:Both PedsQL™4.0 and RQLQ were suitable for assessing the health status of AR clinical patients.PedsQL™4.0 and RQLQ each covers different aspects of the QOL of AR clinical patients, and the combination of the two questionnaires could improve the QOL assessment．.

Effect of curcumin on nasal symptoms and airflow in patients with perennial allergic rhinitis.

BACKGROUND: Allergic rhinitis (AR) is a common disorder that can significantly affect patient quality of life. Previous studies have found that curcumin had anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects and clinical benefits in cancer and asthma. OBJECTIVE: To determine the efficacy of curcumin in the treatment of AR and to explore the molecular mechanisms involved. METHODS: In a randomized, double-blind study, 241 patients with AR received either placebo or oral curcumin for 2 months. The therapeutic effects of curcumin were evaluated by nasal symptoms and nasal airflow resistance. In addition, the production of interferon γ, interleukin (IL) 4, IL-10, and tumor necrosis factor α from mononuclear cells and IL-8, soluble intercellular adhesion molecule, polyethylene glycol 2, and leukotriene C4 from polymorphonuclear neutrophils were compared before and after curcumin treatment. RESULTS: Curcumin alleviated nasal symptoms (sneezing and rhinorrhea) and nasal congestion through reduction of nasal airflow resistance. Curcumin was found to exert diverse immunomodulatory effects, including suppression of IL-4, IL-8, and tumor necrosis factor α and increased production of IL-10 and soluble intercellular adhesion molecule. However, curcumin did not affect the release of prostaglandin E2 and leukotriene C4 from polymorphonuclear neutrophils. CONCLUSION: This pilot study provides the first evidence of the capability of curcumin of improving nasal airflow and modulating immune response in patients with AR.

[Clinical diagnosis and treatment of allergic pharyngitis].

Although the concept of united airway disease has been widely accepted, most scholars emphasize only the effect of rhino-sinusitis while ignoring the pharyngeal factors to the lower airway, especially to the allergic pharyngitis (AP), which still lacks enough awareness. First of all, absence of unified diagnostic standard leads to the lack of epidemiological data, which, results in doctors' personal experience but no guideline in treatments. In addition, it is still not clear that the role of AP in the allergic airway diseases and its relationship with asthma. However, the number of patients with AP has been increasing obviously in daily clinic practice. Combined with the previous observation, this paper does a systematic review about the clinical problems of AP, expecting to give a hand to the clinical diagnosis and treatment of AP.

Understanding paediatric allergic fungal sinusitis: Is it more aggressive?

OBJECTIVE: To study and characterize the features of AFRS in children as compared to adults. METHODS: 50 consecutive patients of AFRS attending our outpatient department were included in the study from July 2011 to December 2013. They were divided into two groups (A and B) according to age being ≤14 years and >14 years. Clinical history and examination included anterior rhinoscopy, SNOT 20 scores, CT of Nose and PNS (para nasal sinuses) (Lund Mackay scores), diagnostic nasal endoscopy (Kupferberg's grades), punch biopsy from nasal polyp, serum IgE, absolute eosinophil counts (AEC) and Aspergillus skin hypersensitivity test was done in all patients for conformation of AFRS. Bent and Kuhn's criteria were used for diagnosis. Sweat chloride levels were done in all patients of group A. RESULTS: Group A had 12 patients and group B had 38. Mean duration of symptoms was significantly less in children as compared to adults (p<0.05). All patients of both groups had nasal polyposis at presentation. Unilateral disease and multisinus involvement was more common in children (6/12) as compared to adults. Proptosis (2/12) and telecanthus (4/12) was more common in children (group A) as compared to adults (group B). LM (Lund Mackay) scores and serum IgE were significantly high in children as compared to adults. Follow up CT scans showed early evidence of recurrence in children as compared to adults (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: AFRS was seen to be more aggressive in children with increased fungal load when compared with adults. Typically, AFRS in children was less responsive to treatment with increased recurrence rates.

[Effects of nasal symptoms on the psychological statuses of adults with moderate-to-severe persistent allergic rhinitis].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the psychological statuses of Chinese adults with moderate-to-severe persistent allergic rhinitis, and evaluate the effects of nasal symptoms on their psychological statuseses. METHOD: The Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90) or self-reporting Inventory was employed to analyze the psychological statuses of 539 adults with moderate-to-severe persistent allergic rhinitis. RESULT: The SCL-90 scores of the adults with moderate-to-severe persistent allergic rhinitis were statistically higher than those of non-allergic adults in terms of somatization, depression, anxiety and hostility. No statistical discrepancies existed in gender or age. The course of disease contributed to somatization and compulsion. The effects of nasal symptoms included two aspects: nasal obstruction had a conspicuous impact on somatization, compulsion, interpersonal sensitivity, depression, anxiety and psychosis, while nasal itching contributed to somatization, depression and anxiety. CONCLUSION: The psychological statuses of adults with moderate-to-severe persistent allergic rhinitis is evidently worse than that of non-allergic adults. Symptoms such as nasal obstruction and itching had an obvious impact on outpatients' psychological statuses.

[Aspirin hypersensitivity: characteristics and diagnostic approach]. / Intolérance à l'aspirine : caractéristiques et éléments diagnostiques.

INTRODUCTION: In routine medical practice, the diagnosis of aspirin hypersensitivity (AH) remains difficult. No clinical feature or biomarker is available to reliably confirm this diagnosis and oral provocation tests (OPT) are rarely performed. AIM: To compare asthmatics with and without AH. METHOD: The clinical characteristics of 21 asthmatics with and 24 without AH respectively were determined. AH was defined by a positive OPT. A full blood count was done before and 24 hours after the OPT. RESULTS: The medical history was associated with a weak sensitivity (52%) and a good specificity (96%) for assessing the diagnosis of AH. There was a higher prevalence of AH in women, and a higher frequency of allergic rhinitis in AH, but no characteristic was useful to facilitate the diagnosis of AH in asthmatic patients. Our results demonstrate higher values of platelets in AH patients. Following OPT, in AH patients only, a decrease in blood eosinophils and an increase in neutrophils was observed. CONCLUSIONS: These results confirm that the diagnosis of AH is challenging, with the history having only weak sensitivity. The observation that fluctuations in eosinophils and neutrophils occur following OPT in AH patients only warrants further investigations and suggests a rapid pro-inflammatory role for aspirin.

[Allergic rhinitis in the context of chronic rhinosinusitis]. / Allergische Rhinitis im Kontext der chronischen Rhinosinusitis.

Chronic Rhinosinusitis is one of the most frequent chronic diseases. A major cause is allergic rhinitis. Both illnesses and the combination of both, which is the topic of this educational article, as well as the clarification and therapy of differential diagnoses are belonging in the hands of the otorhinolaryngologist. Finally, it is not completely understood which mechanisms of the allergic inflammation in the nose lead or predispose in the individual patient to the development of a chronic sinus disease. A series of excellent national and international guidelines have been published supporting the otorhinolaryngologist in diagnostics and treatment of patients with allergic rhinosinusitis. This article presents the most important and actual diagnostic and therapeutic procedures for the treatment of this important chronic disease in children and adults.

Predictive findings of allergic disease in fiberoptic nasolaryngoscopy.

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: To determine whether findings on fiberoptic nasolaryngoscopy beyond the nasal cavity can aid in diagnosis of atopy. STUDY DESIGN: Case control analysis of patients undergoing fiberoptic nasolaryngoscopy and allergy testing at a single academic institution. METHODS: Patients who underwent flexible nasolaryngoscopy for either laryngeal or nasal symptoms and allergy testing by in vitro methods were divided into an atopic group and a nonatopic control group based on results of allergy testing. Three board-certified otolaryngologists who were blinded to the atopic status and symptoms viewed 88 patient videos and filled out an 8-item endoscopic rating questionnaire for each. Correlation between rater scores, endoscopic findings, and atopic status was calculated using Randolph's multirater kappa values and Mann-Whitney test. RESULTS: Intrarater reliability was moderate to perfect for all physicians on all questions (kappa 0.545-1.0). Inter-rater reliability was slight to fair (kappa 0.143-0.399) for all questions and the overall impression of atopic disease. Abnormalities of the torus tubarius (P = .007) and increased nasopharyngeal secretions (P = .038) were predictive of atopic disease, whereas the presence of an adenoid (P = .08) and impression of atopic disease (P = .15) approached significance. All other endoscopic measures were not predictive of atopic status. CONCLUSIONS: Fiberoptic nasolaryngeal findings within the nasopharynx rather than the larynx are predictive of a positive atopic status. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 3b.

Efficacy of sublingual immunotherapy for house dust mite allergic rhinitis.

In the present study, we investigated the outcomes of sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) in house dust mite-induced allergic rhinitis (HDM-AR) patients. In this prospective, multicentric study, 186 patients with AR who had positive skin prick test results for HDMs were included. The patients were administered SLIT using Staloral 300 for 1 year. Evaluation of the patients regarding symptom scores, clinical findings and Rhinitis Quality of Life Questionnaire (RQLQ) scores was performed at baseline, and then at 6 and 12 months of therapy. Our results showed that, for all of the evaluated items (symptom scores, clinical findings and RQLQ scores), 12-month values were significantly lower than those at 6 months and baseline. Similarly, 6-month values were significantly lower than those at baseline. There were no complications in any of our patients. SLIT for HDM-AR is a treatment modality that can be used safely. We obtained better results than expected, and the treatment showed a positive psychological effect; the patients believed that SLIT was the final step of treatment and, which made them feel better.

[Two cases of allergic fungal rhinosinusitis with bone destruction].

We report herein two cases of allergic fungal rhinosinusitis accompanied by bone destruction of the adjacent nasal sinuses. The first case involved a 21-year-old man who presented with left exophthalmos. Computed tomography (CT) showed soft tissue lesions in the left paranasal sinuses and destruction of the left lamina papyraceae, as well as infiltration of the lesion into the orbit. In the second case, a 39-year-old man, CT showed bone destruction of the skull base and medial wall of the left orbit. In both cases, total serum immunoglobulin (Ig)E level was >1000 IU/mL and fungus-specific IgEs were increased. Fungal hyphae were identified within the mucus on histopathological examination in both cases; however, no fungal invasion of the mucosa was apparent. Final diagnosis was allergic fungal rhinosinusitis (AFRS) in both cases. AFRS is a relatively new disease concept that was proposed in the early 1980s, with disease characteristics very similar to eosinophilic rhinosinusitis. Occasionally, AFRS must be differentiated from malignant disease or invasive fungal rhinosinusitis, so an understanding of the clinical features is important.

Predictive factors for clinical response to allergy immunotherapy in children with asthma and rhinitis.

BACKGROUND: To date, no predictive methods for the clinical response to allergy immunotherapy (AIT) are available. We sought to evaluate the pretreatment parameters used in diagnosing allergic asthma and/or rhinitis including allergen skin-prick test responses, serum specific and total IgE (sIgE and tIgE) levels and blood eosinophil counts, and to identify whether these can be used to predict clinical effectiveness in children treated with immunotherapy. METHODS: This study involved 185 children who had undergone 3 years of standardized-quality house-dust mite subcutaneous immunotherapy. Clinical characteristics and laboratory parameters were analyzed. A multivariate unconditional logistic regression model and receiver operating characteristic curves were used. Predicted probabilities and predictive areas under the curve were calculated. RESULTS: The clinical response to AIT was effective in 129/185 (69.7%) patients. Four variables were associated with clinical response by multivariate logistic analysis: tobacco smoke exposure [odds ratio (OR) 2.845 and 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.147-7.058; p = 0.024], a family history of atopy (OR 2.881 and 95% CI 1.240-6.692; p = 0.014), a serum tIgE level ≥965 kU/l (OR 5.917 and 95% CI 2.320-15.089; p = 0.000) and an sIgE/tIgE ratio ≥6% (OR 0.336 and 95% CI 0.124-0.911; p = 0.032). The sensitivity and specificity of the area under the curve of the serum tIgE were higher than those of serum sIgE and sIgE/tIgE ratio alone. CONCLUSION: Tobacco smoke exposure, atopic family history, serum tIgE and sIgE/tIgE ratio were in significant correlation with clinical response to AIT in children, which may be helpful for patient selection before immunotherapy. The serum tIgE is superior to both the serum sIgE/tIgE ratio and sIgE levels alone in predicting clinical effectiveness.

Risk of cancer in patients with medically diagnosed hay fever or allergic rhinitis.

Data on allergic conditions as risk or protective factors for cancer are controversial probably because most studies have used self-reported data on mixed groups of allergies in a case-control setting. We define cancer risks in medically diagnosed hay fever/allergic rhinitis patients in a nationwide cohort study. A total of 138,723 hay fever/allergic rhinitis patients were identified from three Swedish health care databases and standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) were calculated for subsequent cancers identified from the Swedish Cancer Registry. Overall cancer risk was not changed (SIR 1.03). For individual cancers, the highest SIR was observed for nasal cancer (SIR 2.63), followed by testicular (1.46) and endocrine tumors (1.42), and kidney (1.31), prostate (1.18) and breast (1.11) cancers. The results were consistent in the three sources of data and all SIRs were above unity, albeit mainly not statistically significant. The SIRs for nervous system tumors were above unity and of borderline significance. SIRs were decreased for esophageal (0.50), liver (0.62) and lung (0.78) cancers, and the three sources of data agreed in the direction of the effect. The increased risks for testicular, renal, prostate and endocrine cancers may be explained by immunological mechanisms. Excess risk for these cancer accounts for a significant population attributable fraction. Nervous system cancers showed a borderline increase and none of the histological types were significantly decreased, providing strong evidence against the published case-control studies, which have reported protective effects. The reasons for the reduced risks for esophageal, liver and lung cancer remain to be explained.

Pseudotumoral allergic fungal sinusitis with skull base involvement.

Here we report a case of pseudotumoral recurrence of allergic fungal sinusitis with involvement of the skull base that was successfully treated with systemic corticosteroids and itraconazole without surgery. This report discusses the sometimes misleading radiological and clinical features as well as the diagnostic and therapeutic challenges of a condition that should be recognized by ENT specialists, neurosurgeons, ophtalmologists and radiologists.