Gabriel Gastaminza and colleagues of the Department of Allergology at Hospital Santiago-Apostol in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain, have conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial to assess the efficacy and tolerability of sublingual immunotherapy in 28 adult latex-allergic patients.

The patients had been undergoing permanent latex avoidance, and were then contracted to undergo a commercial latex-sublingual immunotherapy or placebo for one year followed by a year of open, active therapy. The results, including four reactions in the active and five in the placebo groups were recorded, plus two people dropped out due to pruritis and acute dermatitis respectively, failed to show any significant difference, except for an improvement in the average percentage of basophils activated. The scientists recommended that further studies to evaluate latex-sublingual immunotherapy because efficacy could not be determined in these patients with avoidance of the allergen. 

Source: Infection Control Today

First Published in August 2011

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