•  
  •  
 

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

Abstract

Background/aim: This study aimed to evaluate the frequency, timing, severity, and clinical predictors of systemic reactions in children receiving subcutaneous allergen-specific immunotherapy (SCIT) with house dust mite (HDM) and grass pollen extracts under real-world clinical conditions.

Materials and methods: This multicenter retrospective study included 623 children with moderate-to-severe allergic rhinitis, with or without asthma, who received SCIT between 2006 and 2023 at two tertiary pediatric allergy centers. Clinical characteristics, laboratory findings, immunotherapy protocols, and systemic reactions (SRs) were recorded and graded according to the updated 2024 World Allergy Organization (WAO) systemic reaction scale.

Results: SCIT was well tolerated. Systemic reactions occurred in 10.7%, corresponding to 0.27% per injection. Most SRs were mild-to-moderate (WAO grades 1–2), and approximately three-quarters occurred during the maintenance phase. A progressive decline in SR incidence was observed throughout the treatment period. In the pollen SCIT subgroup, asthma was the only independent predictor of SRs (OR, 2.35; 95% CI 1.13–4.88; p = 0.022). No life-threatening reactions or fatalities were observed.

Conclusion: Pediatric SCIT with pollen and HDM extracts demonstrated a favorable safety profile, with infrequent and predominantly nonsevere systemic reactions. The association between asthma and SRs in pollen SCIT highlights the importance of optimal asthma control throughout immunotherapy.

Author ORCID Identifier

FİGEN ÇELEBİ ÇELİK: 0000-0002-1100-4117

ALP KAZANCIOĞLU: 0000-0001-7185-8512

SONER GÜNDER: 0000-0002-0953-1380

MELİKE OCAK: 0000-0001-7841-4690

BERNA UZUNOĞLU: 0009-0008-5476-9743

CANAN KARKINER: 0000-0001-6662-8288

ÖZLEM SANCAKLI: 0000-0003-2489-4021

AYFER TUNCER: 0000-0001-7695-065X

ÖZGE UYSAL SOYER: 0000-0002-7444-251X

BÜLENT ŞEKEREL: 0000-0003-4232-3396

DEMET CAN: 0000-0002-1258-9348

ÜMİT ŞAHİNER: 0000-0003-0088-913X

DOI

10.55730/1300-0144.6347

Keywords

Asthma, pediatric, pollen, subcutaneous immunotherapy, systemic reactions

First Page

1031

Last Page

1039

Publisher

The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TÜBİTAK)

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Download

Share

COinS