ABSTRACT
ObjectiveFew studies are reported on the sublingual immunotherapy with dermatophagoides farinae drops (DFD) for mite-allergic cough variant asthma (CVA) in children. This study aimed to investigate the clinical effects of DFD sublingual immunotherapy on mite-allergic CVA in children.MethodsWe retrospectively analyzed the clinical data on 225 children with mite-allergic CVA treated in Wuhan Children′s Hospital from January 2016 to January 2017. The patients were divided into a control (n=123) and an experimental group (n=102) to receive symptomatic treatment and symptomatic treatment combined with DFD sublingual immunotherapy, respectively, both for 10 months. We recorded the relevant indicators, including the symptom scores, lung function parameters, levels of dust mite IgE and inflammatory factors (IL-4, TGF-β and INF-γ), and related risk factors, and compared the data obtained between the two groups of patients before and after treatment.ResultsThere were no statistically significant differences between the two groups of patients in the baseline daily and nocturnal cough symptom scores, lung function parameters, or levels of serum IgE, IL-4, TGF-β and INF-γ (P>0.05). After treatment, the children in the experimental group showed markedly lower daily and nocturnal cough symptom scores than the control (0.87±0.06 and 0.91±0.11 vs 2.54±0.32 and 2.38±0.42, P<0.05), better pulmonary function parameters (FEV1/FVC: \[1.98±0.56\]% / \[79.67±9.05\]% vs \[1.65±0.37\] / \[75.87±11.56\]%, P<0.05), and a higher effectiveness rate (73.53% vs 54.47%, P<0.05). The single- and multi-factor analyses showed that age, disease course and treatment methods were independent risk factors influencing the therapeutic effect on mite-allergic CVA in children (P<0.05).ConclusionSublingual immunotherapy with DFD can effectively improve the clinical symptoms and lung function in children with mite-allergic CVA, which may be associated with the decreased levels of serum IgE, IL-4, TGF-β and INF-γ. Age, disease course and treatment methods are independent risk factors influencing the therapeutic effect.