Comparable profiles of serum histamine and IgG4 levels in allergic beekeepers

Growing evidence identifies histamine as a key player in allergic responses, but the reports relating serum histamine to tolerance are scarce and inconclusive. This study investigated the relationship of circulating histamine to the tolerant phenotype in allergic beekeepers. The results showed a positive correlation between the serum levels of histamine and specific immunoglobulin G4 (sIgG4) to honeybee venom, but not with total IgE or sIgE. Interestingly, both sIgG4 and histamine levels were negatively correlated with the time since the last bee sting. In contrast to total IgE and sIgE, serum sIgG4 and histamine levels followed comparable patterns, being higher in tolerant/recently stung individuals and lower in the least frequently stung subgroup. The data obtained in this pilot study associated, for the first time, serum histamine levels with allergen tolerance in allergic individuals and provided the lead for further considering the putative immunomodulatory properties of histamine in allergic responses. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd

New concepts in pediatric rhinitis

Rhinitis—and especially allergic rhinitis (AR)—remains the most frequent hypersensitivity condition, affecting up to a quarter of the population and impacting the quality of life of individual patients and the health economy. Data, especially with respect to underlying pathophysiologic mechanisms, mainly derive from studies on adults and are subsequently extrapolated to the pediatric population. Therapeutic algorithms for children with rhinitis are long based on the same principles as in adults. We explore and describe novel aspects of rhinitis, ranging from mechanisms to disease classification, phenotypes, diagnostic and monitoring tools, and the use of treatments, with a focus on the traits of pediatric age groups. © 2021 EAACI and John Wiley and Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley and Sons Ltd

Anaphylaxis to gadobenate dimeglumine (Multihance®): A case report

Background: Gadolinium chelates are relatively safe contrast media used in MRI. Immediate severe adverse effects are exceptionally rare and mostly concern mild anaphylactoid reactions. We report a case of anaphylaxis to gadobenate dimeglumine (Gd-BOPTA, Multihance®), a gadolinium-based contrast agent. Methods: A 32-year-old female patient with a personal history of multiple sclerosis, while undergoing an MRI scan, developed bronchospasm and acute urticaria with diffuse giant pruritic plaques in the first minute of Gd-BOPTA infusion. The procedure was cancelled and acute treatment of the reaction took place. The patient reported 2 additional MRI scans with definite use of unknown contrast media in the past 2 years without any adverse effect. Blood samples were obtained 2 and 48 h after the reaction for measurement of serum tryptase concentration (Pharmacia Diagnostics, Uppsala, Sweden). Skin prick tests and intradermal tests were performed using 1:1,000, 1:100 and 1:10 dilution of the offending agent and alternative gadolinium-based agents [gadodiamide (Omniscan®) and gadoteric acid (Dotarem®)]. A group of 10 nonatopic individuals who underwent the same skin testing comprised the control group. Results: Tryptase concentration was highly elevated 2 h after the reaction (21 μg/l) compared with that at 48 h (3 μg/l). Skin prick tests in our patient were all negative, while intradermal testing with 0.03 ml of 1:100 and 1:10 preparations of Multihance showed a definite positive wheal-and-flare reaction. Skin tests to the alternative agents showed no response. In the control group, all performed tests were negative. Conclusion: We report the first case of an allergic reaction to gadobenate dimeglumine. Besides, skin testing seems to be a precious diagnostic tool which, if positive, strongly suggests a mast cell-mediated underlying mechanism. Copyright © 2007 S. Karger AG

A Gesture Recognition approach to classifying Allergic Rhinitis gestures using Wrist-worn Devices a multidisciplinary case study

In this paper, we propose a multidisciplinary Gesture Recognition case study using a Machine Learning approach for the detection and classification of allergic rhinitis-related gestures. Allergic diseases and especially allergic rhinitis are among the most common diseases in the world, mostly underappreciated, causing considerable impairment of daily activities, including job, and school productivity. For this reason, close monitoring and early recognition of symptoms worsening are considered essential. We hypothesize that recognizing allergic rhinitis to patients by such an approach may be a useful tool for such purpose. In our study, for the first time, the most common allergic rhinitis gestures are identified, based on patients’ description and specialists’ experience. Our data is retrieved by a large pool of active allergic rhinitis patients attending three specialized outpatient clinics in Greece. Gestures are recorded with the help of a wristband Bluetooth device incorporating a 3-axis accelerometer and a 3-axis gyroscope. Feature engineering and several signal processing methods are then applied to the raw sensor data (which are treated as 6-dimensional signals), and valuable features are extracted related to the time and frequency domains. To improve the performance of the Machine Learning models, we utilize Principal Component Analysis (PCA), and we also use functions such as Grid Search and Randomized Search, in order to achieve higher recognition accuracy by hyperparameter optimization. With these features and steps of processing, we built a classifier that can uniquely identify 15 allergic rhinitis gestures with an accuracy of 93% in a challenging variety of moves in the patient’s head (nose, eye, ear). It is worth noting that allergic rhinitis gestures are more subtle, varied and spontaneous than other moves that have been considered in the literature so far. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time that a Machine Learning approach is successfully applied in such a challenging field like respiratory diseases

A QUERCETIN CONTAINING SUPPLEMENT REDUCES NIACIN-INDUCED FLUSH IN HUMANS

Coronary artery disease is associated with increased serum levels of cholesterol, triglycerides and LDL, but low levels of HDL. The most potent agent capable of reversing this trend is the vitamin nicotinic acid (niacin). However, compliance even with extended-release preparations and addition of acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) is hampered by the development of a feeling of erythema and burning (”flush”), especially on the face. We recently showed that the natural flavonoids quercetin and luteolin can eliminate “flush”, as well as inhibit both niacin-induced plasma prostaglandin D-2 (PGD(2)) and serotonin increase in an animal model. We conducted a pilot clinical study in humans. Four normal male subjects received (a) I g immediate release niacin either alone or after (b) the dietary formulation (Algonot-plus (R)) containing 150 ling quercetin per capsule. Subjects completed a visual scale (1=no, 5=worst response) symptom assessment. Erythema and burning sensation scores were both 4.75 +/- 0.50 and lasted for 3.63 +/- 1.11 hours. After Algonot-plus (R) administration, both scores were reduced to 2.5 +/- 0.58 and lasted for only 1.68 +/- 0.70 hours. Quercetin also inhibited methylnicotinate-induced human mast cell PGD(2) release. These preliminary results suggest that quercetin could reduce niacin-induced “flush” in humans