Abstract
BackgroundSublingual immunotherapy has been proven as a well-tolerated and effective treatment for allergic rhinitis. Within this type of treatment, GRAZAX® is the most documented product in terms of safety and efficacy. The objective of this study was to identify the patients’ expectations and level of treatment satisfaction, as well as the clinical management of patients with moderate/severe allergic rhinoconjunctivitis treated with GRAZAX®.MethodsThis was a non-interventional, observational, multi-centre, open-label study involving a total of 131 adult patients aged 18–66 years with confirmed diagnosis of grass-allergy and initiated treatment with GRAZAX® between June 2010 and April 2011.ResultsIn the pollen season after starting treatment, 56.6% of patients stated that their symptoms were much less/less intense, 86% needed less symptomatic medication for control of their symptoms, and 74.4% manifested to have improved (quite/a lot) as regards their allergic disease since treatment was initiated as compared with previous grass pollen season. The patient satisfaction with GRAZAX® was measured using a visual analogue scale (VAS) between 0 (minimum satisfaction) and 100 (maximum satisfaction) comprising five different items: effectiveness, tolerability, cost, convenience and overall satisfaction. The results obtained for each item were [mean (SD)]: 74.7 (18.1), 70.3 (36.1), 39.3 (25.8), 86.2 (12.6), 78.4 (15.8) respectively. The patient’s level of satisfaction is highly influenced, especially in terms of assessment of effectiveness, tolerability and convenience, by the information provided by the specialist.ConclusionsIn summary, it can be concluded that improved communication leads to increased patient knowledge, greater patient compliance, and increased patient satisfaction.
Highlights
Sublingual immunotherapy has been proven as a well-tolerated and effective treatment for allergic rhinitis
The purpose of this study is to determine the expectations and level of satisfaction of patients, as well as to collect information regarding the clinical management of patients with moderate/severe allergic rhinoconjunctivitis treated with GRAZAX®
The questionnaire was answered by the study subjects and aimed to assess their state of health and knowledge and expectations regarding the treatment with GRAZAX®; the visual analogue scale (VAS) scoring ranged from not at all satisfied (0) to maximum satisfaction (100)
Summary
Sublingual immunotherapy has been proven as a well-tolerated and effective treatment for allergic rhinitis. Within this type of treatment, GRAZAX® is the most documented product in terms of safety and efficacy. Despite not being considered a life-threatening disease, allergic rhinitis or rhinoconjunctivitis cause functional problems (physical, emotional, social, and occupational) that tend to worsen with time. This disease represents a high cost burden for healthcare systems, often exceeding those derived from more serious conditions; allergic rhinoconjunctivitis is very common [1], affecting around one in four people of the total population. A Cochrane review published in 2011 [3] concluded that the use of sublingual immunotherapy for allergic rhinitis and rhinoconjunctivitis is effective and is not associated with significant adverse events
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