Double-blind, placebo-controlled immunotherapy with mixed grass-pollen allergoids. II. Comparison between parameters assessing the efficacy of immunotherapy.

Specific immunotherapy is effective in alleviating symptoms in grass pollen-induced rhinitis, but there are no clear data demonstrating a correlation between symptom-medication scores and objective parameters. Twenty-five patients taking part in a double-blind, placebo-controlled immunotherapy with mixed grass pollen-formalinized allergoids were studied. All patients had the same investigations.

Nasal challenge with pollen grains, skin-prick tests and specific IgE in patients with grass pollen allergy.

Nasal challenges with pollen grains are as close as possible to natural pollen exposure, but they are not well documented in grass pollen allergy. Forty-four grass pollen allergic patients and ten non-allergic volunteers were tested by means of nasal challenge, quantitative skin-prick tests with a standardized orchard grass pollen extract and serum-specific IgE. Nasal challenges were performed with lactose and increasing concentrations of orchard grass pollen grains (15-3645 grains, three-fold increase).