0000000000365838
AUTHOR
J. Christian Virchow
Personalized medicine for allergy treatment: Allergen immunotherapy still a unique and unmatched model
International audience; The introduction of personalized medicine (PM) has been a milestone in the history of medical therapy, because it has revolutionized the previous approach of treating the disease with that of treating the patient. It is known today that diseases can occur in different genetic variants, making specific treatments of proven efficacy necessary for a given endotype. Allergic diseases are particularly suitable for PM, because they meet the therapeutic success requirements, including a known molecular mechanism of the disease, a diagnostic tool for such disease, and a treatment blocking the mechanism. The stakes of PM in allergic patients are molecular diagnostics, to dete…
Defining moderate asthma exacerbations in clinical trials based on ATS/ERS joint statement
Background Exacerbations are a key outcome in clinical research, providing patient-relevant information about symptomatic control, health state and disease progression. Generally considered as an episode of (sub)acute deterioration of respiratory symptoms, a precise, clinically useful definition is needed for use in clinical trials. Aim and methods Focussing on moderate exacerbations, this opinion piece reviews landmark trials and current guidelines to provide a practical definition of a moderate exacerbation. Specifically, we adapt the ATS/ERS consensus statement of terminology Reddel et al. (2009) [1] which provides a conceptual (or 'theoretical') definition for moderate exacerbations, to…
Reslizumab as add-on therapy in patients with refractory asthma
### Key messages #### What is the key question? #### What is the bottom line? #### Why read on? Asthma is a common disease, affecting an estimated 334 million people worldwide, with considerable impact on quality of life and high associated costs.1–3 Asthma severity is assessed retrospectively from the level of treatment required to control symptoms and exacerbations. Approximately 5%–10% of patients with asthma are believed to suffer from severe disease.4 Patients with severe asthma typically require ongoing maintenance therapy with high-dose inhaled corticosteroid (ICS)/long-acting beta-agonist (LABA).2 Furthermore, systemic corticosteroids (SCS) are often required for potentially life-th…
Efficacy of a House Dust Mite Sublingual Allergen Immunotherapy Tablet in Adults With Allergic Asthma: A Randomized Clinical Trial.
Importance The house dust mite (HDM) sublingual allergen immunotherapy (SLIT) tablet is a potential novel treatment option for HDM allergy–related asthma. Objectives To evaluate the efficacy and adverse events of the HDM SLIT tablet vs placebo for asthma exacerbations during an inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) reduction period. Design, Settings, and Participants Double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial conducted between August 2011 and April 2013 in 109 European trial sites. The trial included 834 adults with HDM allergy–related asthma not well controlled by ICS or combination products, and with HDM allergy–related rhinitis. Key exclusion criteria were FEV 1 less than 70% of predicted…