Allergen-specific immunotherapy for allergic rhinitis in the elderly: is it never too late?

Evaluation of: Bozek A, Ignasiak B, Filipowska B, Jarzab J. House dust mite sublingual immunotherapy: a double-blind, placebo-controlled study in elderly patients with allergic rhinitis. Clin. Exp. Allergy 43(2), 242-248 (2013). There is a well-accepted tenet in allergen-specific immunotherapy (SIT), especially for respiratory allergies such as rhinitis and asthma: this approach should be, in general, reserved for the pediatric population and young adults. This belief is based on the fact that SIT is considered the only therapy able to modify the course of allergic diseases. In the case of allergic rhinitis, for example, SIT could reduce the risk of asthma developing. Therefore, SIT is evaluated with 'the sooner the better' conviction. In elderly people with respiratory allergies, the 'course' of the disease is considered too advanced and therefore the room and therapeutic value of SIT is considered very limited. Bozek et al. evaluated the clinical efficacy of sublingual SIT (SLIT) with house dust mite (HDM) extracts in elderly (age >60 years) patients with a long history of allergic rhinitis due to HDM allergen exposure. In a 3-year double-blind placebo-controlled study, SLIT was able to significantly reduce the nose-related symptoms and the medication score. The conclusions of the authors were that SLIT with HDM allergens resulted in a significant clinical improvement in the active group compared with the placebo group, particularly during the period of the year in which the heating would be on. This therapy was well tolerated. These observations may lead to the more frequent use of SLIT immunotherapy in the elderly.