Treatment of seasonal allergic rhinitis: Useless versus helpful allergy therapy

doi:10.1136/bmj.327.7425.1229-a

BMJ 2003;327:1229 (22 November), doi:10.1136/bmj.327.7425.1229-a

Letter

Treatment of seasonal allergic rhinitis

Useless versus helpful allergy therapy

The first 100% of the full text of this article appears below.

EDITOR—Enzyme potentiation has always been controversialand unproved, and Radcliffe et al showed again that it doesn'twork.¹ However, the old method of allergy shots that has beenaround for over 50 years is still quite helpful and safe andendorsed by the World Health Organization as a useful treatment.²Allergy desensitisation should be considered in those patientswho are frustrated with symptoms that are poorly responsiveto medications.

Michael L Loren, assistant professor paediatrics

University of Kansas, 17500 Medical Center Parkway, Suite 6, Independence, MO 64057, USA mloren1357@yahoo.com

Competing interests: None declared.

Radcliffe MJ, Lewith GT, Turner RG, Prescott P, Church MK, Holgate ST. Enzyme potentiated desensitisation in treatment of seasonal allergic rhinitis: double blind randomised controlled study. BMJ 2003;327: 251-4. (2 August.)[Abstract/Free Full Text]
Bousquet J, Lockey R, Malling HJ. Allergen immunotherapy: therapeutic vaccines for allergic diseases. A WHO position paper. J Allergy Clin Immunol 1998;102: 558-62.[CrossRef][Web of Science][Medline]

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Enzyme potentiated desensitisation in treatment of seasonal allergic rhinitis: double blind randomised controlled study: Michael J Radcliffe, George T Lewith, Richard G Turner, Philip Prescott, Martin K Church, and Stephen T Holgate
BMJ 2003 327: 251-254. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]