[Intranasal phototherapy for the treatment of allergic rhinitis]

Allergic rhinitis is a frequent disease, accompanied by significant social-economic costs and a negative impact on the quality of life. Phototherapy has a profound immunosuppressive effect and is effectively used in the treatment of several immune mediated skin diseases such as atopic dermatitis.

The authors investigated the efficacy of intranasal phototherapy with a combination of low doses of ultraviolet-B, ultraviolet-A and visible light in allergic rhinitis.

A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study was conducted in patients with a history of at least 2 years of moderate to severe ragweed-induced allergic rhinitis that was not controlled by anti-allergic drugs. Intranasal phototherapy was performed 3 times a week for 3 weeks. As placebo low intensity visible light was used.

Phototherapy resulted in a significant improvement of clinical symptoms for nasal itching, rhinorrhea, sneezing and total nasal score. Scores for nasal obstruction slightly improved during phototherapy while a significant increased was found in the placebo group. In the overall efficacy assessment, both patients and investigators found phototherapy significantly more efficient than placebo. Phototherapy was well tolerated, the only side effect was the slight dryness of the nasal mucosa.

These results suggest that intranasal phototherapy is effective for the treatment of allergic rhinitis, and opens up new opportunities for the treatment of immune-mediated mucosal diseases.