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American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Annual Scientific Meeting
November 07, 2014
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Patients with asthma predisposed to allergic diseases

ATLANTA — The majority of patients with asthma also were likely to have an allergic disease, according to a speaker at the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology Annual Scientific Meeting.

“In mild and moderate asthma, 95% of patients are predisposed to have allergic disease,” Timothy Craig, DO, professor of medicine and pediatrics, distinguished educator, Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, Penn State University, Hershey, said during his presentation.

Craig compared data from his study published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology in 2008 to prior studies that had placed the rates between 50% and 82%.

According to Craig’s study, cat allergen was the most common aeroallergen in positive skin testing at 72%.

Data from other studies demonstrated patients with asthma and nasal polyps were least likely to have a positive skin test for allergy, compared with those with older age, female sex and severe asthma; however, the majority in each subgroup had a positive skin test for allergy.

Craig also reported that, according to studies, subcutaneous immunotherapy (SCIT) was more effective than sublingual immunotherapy in reducing asthma symptoms in patients with asthma and allergic diseases.

“It’s fair to say that asthma symptoms, as well as medications, are decreased” using SCIT, Craig said. “Allergy tested in [patients with] asthma may identify patients that benefit from SCIT.”

According to Craig, it is important to define allergies in asthma because it allows the development of plans for avoidance, allows proper endotype of the patients and determines the best therapy.

“When we look at [asthma] endotypes, even those endotypes that we always think of being non-allergic, it probably is still worthwhile to skin test them in those two groups because I think there are going to be components of avoidance and even immunotherapy that are necessary in those individuals,” Craig told Healio Allergy/Immunotherapy. — by Bruce Thiel

For more information:

Craig T. Allergy and Adult Asthma. Presented at: American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology Annual Scientific Meeting; Nov. 6-10, 2014; Atlanta.

Disclosure: Craig reports being a speaker for Genentech, GlaxoSmithKline and Teva. He is also a researcher for Genentech, Merck, Novartis and Pfizer. He is a consultant for Merck.