Effects of Serum Vitamin D and Efficacy of Subcutaneous Immunotherapy in Adult Patients With Allergic Rhinitis

Immunotherapy is the standard of treatment for long-life relief of symptoms of allergic rhinitis. Vitamin D may affect the outcomes of treatment. This study evaluated the clinical efficacy of subcutaneous allergen immunotherapy in adult patients with allergic rhinitis based on the serum level of vitamin D. Patients with persistent allergic rhinitis and positivity for skin prick test were evaluated by Sino-nasal Outcome Test (SNOT-22) and Mini Rhinoconjunctivitis Quality of Life Questionnaire (MiniRQLQ) before subcutaneous allergen immunotherapy and during the maintenance phase to assess the relation of the serum level of vitamin D and the clinical efficacy of immunotherapy. After immunotherapy, the greatest reduction in SNOT-22 scores were reported in patients with vitamin D sufficiency (39.0 ± 9.2), followed by vitamin D suboptimal provision (35.1 ± 12.1), insufficiency (25.0 ± 7.5), and deficiency (18.3 ± 6.0) (P < 0.001). The MiniRQLQ reduction in patients with vitamin D sufficiency, suboptimal provision, insufficiency, or deficiency was 30.7 ± 8.7, 27.1 ± 8.7, 20.0 ± 8.6, or 17.4 ± 7.1, respectively (P < 0.001). Both of SNOT-22 and MiniRQLQ scores decreased significantly following immunotherapy in patients with different levels of vitamin D. However, these effects were more pronounced when the level of vitamin D was sufficient.

Level of agreement between children with asthma and their parents on quality of life

Background: Child-parent agreement is a controversial aspect of measuring health-related quality of life [HRQoL] in children and adolescents. The aim of this study was to assess the agreement between the child self-reports and parent proxy reports of the PedsQL 3.0 Asthma Module in Iranian children with asthma to evaluate HRQoL. Moreover, the psychometric properties of the child and parent reports of the PedsQL 3.0 Asthma Module were assessed in the present study

Methods: Participants were 112 children with asthma and their parents, who completed the Farsi version of the PedsQL 3.0 Asthma Module. The multitrait-multimethod correlation matrix and factor analysis were used to test whether the child self-reports and the parent proxy reports measured the same construct. Additionally, convergent and discriminant validity and internal consistency were assessed using the Pearson correlation

Results: The correlation between the child and parent HRQoL perceptions ranged between 0.13 and 0.36 across the same domains. Our factor analysis revealed that the child self-reports and the parent proxy reports measured 2 different constructs of HRQoL. Furthermore, our findings showed that both the child self-reports and the parent proxy reports of the PedsQL 3.0 Asthma Module had excellent internal consistency and acceptable convergent and discriminant validity

Conclusion: Although the child self-reports and the parent proxy reports of the Farsi version of PedsQL 3.0 Asthma Module showed good psychometric properties, they were not interchangeable. Our children with asthma and their parents evaluated child HRQoL from their own viewpoints

Etiology of portal hypertension in children: a single center's experiences

All conditions that interfere with blood flow at any level within the portal system can lead to portal hypertension. For better management of this disorder, it is important to determine the underlying cause. In previous studies, extra-hepatic disorders have been reported as the main cause of portal hypertension in children. In this study, we investigate the underlying causes of portal hypertension in children. This prospective, descriptive study investigated the etiology of 45 children with portal hypertension who referred to Nemazee Hospital Pediatric Gastroenterology Ward from 2005 to 2007. The underlying causes of portal hypertension were determined by liver biopsy, abdominal sonography, abdominal computed tomography scan, and liver Doppler sonography. In this study, 42 of 45 patients [93.3%] developed portal hypertension due to intrahepatic diseases. Extra-hepatic portal hypertension was detected in 3 [6.7%] patients with portal vein thrombosis. Intrahepatic diseases were the most common etiology of portal hypertension among children who referred to our center.