Abstract
In the literature, bronchial allergen challenge is usually reported to result in an increase in histamine-induced airway responsiveness (AR). The present study investigated the relation between baseline AR and allergen- induced changes in AR. The effect of allergen challenge on AR was investigated in 21 atopic asthmatic patients. Allergen challenge resulted in a significant decrease in PC 20 histamine after 24 h. When the group was divided into three subgroups according to baseline PC 20 histamine, a significant decrease in PC 20 histamine was found only in patients with relatively high baseline PC 20 histamine (groups 1 and 2). A significant inverse correlation was found between baseline PC 20 and allergen-induced PC 20 histamine. The effect of repeated allergen challenge on AR was studied in eight patients. The first allergen challenge resulted in a significant decrease in PC 20 histamine; no further decrease in mean PC 20 histamine was seen after the second allergen challenge. These results suggest that allergen-induced changes in AR occur mainly in patients with relatively high baseline PC 20 values. Once an increase in AR is induced, further allergen challenge does not always result in further increase in AR.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 401-406 |
| Number of pages | 6 |
| Journal | Allergy |
| Volume | 51 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| Publication status | Published - 1996 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- allergen-induced airway responsiveness
- baseline airway responsiveness
- repeated allergen challenge