Injection of allergen-antibody complexes is an effective treatment of atopic dermatitis

Atopic dermatitis (AD) can be exacerbated by contact with airborne allergens, amongst which Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (Dpt) appears to be potentially important. Specific IgE antibodies towards Dpt are often found in AD, and it can therefore be speculated that suppression of the production of anti-Dpt IgE might result in a significant clinical improvement. Complexes of antigen and specific antibodies have been shown to suppress the production of antibody in other systems; we report here the evaluation in an open trial of the capacity of such complexes to improve symptoms of AD. Ten adult patients were enrolled in this study. In addition to satisfying the criteria of AD, they all suffered from a severe disease (more than 20% of the body surface involved) that had been stable for at least the last 2 years. The patients had high titers of total IgE antibodies and specific anti-Dpt antibodies. Allergen-antibody complexes were prepared from Dpt allergens and an excess of autologous specific anti-Dpt antibodies obtained by immunoadsorption. The patients received regular injections of these complexes throughout 1 year, during which clinical parameters of disease intensity, percentage of body surface affected and intensity of pruritus were regularly monitored. A significant clinical improvement was obtained after 3-4 months of therapy and was maintained through the 9th month. After 1 year of treatment, 2 patients were completely free of disease, 4 had residual lesions which continued to improve and 4 patients had a partial recurrence of dermatitis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)