Effectiveness of 5-Pyrrolidone-2-Carboxylic Acid and Copper Sulphate (Pirometaxine) in Cold Dry Air Induced Rhinitis with or without Viral Superinfection

Abstract

Introduction: Exposure to cold dry air can determine rhinitis-like symptoms. 5-Pyrrolidone- 2-Carboxylic acid (PCA) and Copper Sulphate (CS) showed antiviral and osmoprotectant ef- fect. Aim of this study is evaluation of effectiveness of 5-Pyrrolidone-2-Carboxylic acid (PCA) and Copper Sulphate pentahydrate (CS) (Pirometaxine) association in the treatment of cold dry air rhinitis with or without viral infection. Methods: Fifty consecutive adult patients affected by cold dry air rhinitis with or without viral/ bacterial infection were enrolled in this prospective observational study and treated with pyro- glutamic acid (PCA) plus copper sulphate (CS) (pirometaxine). All patients underwent an ob- jective evaluation with optic fiber endoscopy and symptoms assessment at time of enrolment, after 3 and 7 days of treatment. Results: All symptoms scores decreased at 3 and 7 days with a mean Total Symptoms Score of 5.98±2.22 and 1.30±1.23, respectively. Twenty-seven patients (54%) reached a Total Symp- toms Score of zero after 7 days. Median number of days until healing was 6. Only 18% of cases had turbinate hypertrophy and 10% nasal mucosa hyperaemia after 7 days. Main side effects were nasal itch in 4 cases (8%) and nasal burning in one case (2%). Conclusions: The association of 5-Pyrrolidone-2-carboxylic acid and copper sulphate (piro- metaxine) represent a safe treatment for CDA-induced rhinitis with or without viral infection, with few side effects. Clinical importance of this therapy will be better understood with further studies, comparing results to those observed in a control group.