Allergy & Immunology News
Shots Relieve Children's Hay Fever, Cut Expenses
Allergy vaccinations reduce total health-care costs in children with hay fever by one-third and drug prescription costs by 16 percent, according to a 10-year U.S. study. Researchers compared the medical claims for 2,770 children with hay fever (allergic rhinitis) who received allergy vaccinations with the claims of 11,000 children with allergic rhinitis who didn't receive allergen immunotherapy.
Vacuum Assisted Delivery Increase Late Onset Asthma
Perinatal factors during delivery might modulate fetal immunological development and thereby be associated with the development of allergic diseases and asthma later.There was a higher prevalence of doctor-diagnosed asthma at any time of life among children who were delivered by vacuum extraction (RR 1.80, 95% CI 1.27–2.56; P < 0.001) in comparison with spontaneously delivered children. In particular, this risk was increased as regards late-onset asthma (RR 2.41, 95% CI 1.52–3.81; P < 0.001). Perinatal effects had less impact on the development of other asthma, atopy or hay fever.
Lupus Worse in Blacks, Hispanics Than in Whites, Study Finds
Blacks and Hispanics appear more likely than whites to develop the most common form of the autoimmune disease lupus and to develop more severe complications from it, new research shows.
Lupus, also known as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a chronic inflammatory disease that often affects the joints, kidneys, blood and nervous system, is generally known to strike women more often than men and some ethnic groups more than others. Its severity can range from mild to fatal.
Allergy drugs may fight diabetes, obesity
Over-the-counter allergy and asthma drugs helped obese, diabetic mice lose weight and control their blood sugar, researchers reported on Monday. Three other studies strongly linked obesity and type-2 diabetes to a dysfunctional immune system, and researchers said these findings could lead to better drugs or perhaps even vaccines to treat the effects of both conditions.
Treatment of patients with new onset Type 1 diabetes with a single course of anti-CD3 mAb teplizumab preserves insulin production for up to 5 years
Clinical Immunology Abstract
Anti-CD3 mAbs may prolong β cell function up to 2 years in patients with new onset Type 1 diabetes (T1DM). Teplizumab caused transient reduction in circulating T cells, but the recovered cells were not new thymic emigrants because T cell receptor excision circles were not increased. There was a trend for reduced loss of C-peptide over 2 years with drug treatment (p = 0.1), and insulin use was lower (p < 0.001).
Obesity May Dampen Response to Asthma Meds
New research suggests that obesity may not worsen asthma, as many experts have thought, but it could dampen the response to medications commonly used to manage the chronic condition.
