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The loss of smell in persistent allergic rhinitis is improved by levocetirizine due to reduction of nasal inflammation but not nasal congestion (the CIRANO study).

AbstractBACKGROUND:
Persistent allergic rhinitis (PER) has a moderate impact on the sense of smell, but no controlled study has reported the effect of antihistamines on the loss of smell in patients with PER.
METHODS:
Patients with PER and subjective loss of the sense of smell (n = 27) were included in this pilot randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Nasal symptoms, nasal endoscopy, skin prick test, acoustic rhinometry, peak nasal inspiratory flow, nasal nitric oxide (nNO), and olfactometry (Barcelona Smell Test-24; BAST-24) were performed and evaluated in all PER patients at baseline and after 7 and 30 days of treatment with levocetirizine 5 mg or placebo.
RESULTS:
The study population was randomized into two homogeneous groups: levocetirizine (n = 14) and placebo groups (n = 13). The evolution of symptoms reflected the therapeutic effect of levocetirizine treatment on rhinorrhea, nasal itching, eye itching, sneezing, and the total symptoms score after 7 and 30 days. Significant improvement in loss of smell by a visual analog scale (VAS) was observed after 7 days of levocetirizine treatment (7.2 ± 4.3; p < 0.05) compared to placebo (-9.4 ± 6.2). Improvement in smell identification by BAST-24 was strongly correlated (r = 0.72; p < 0.05) with smell improvement by VAS after 30 days. After 7 days of treatment with levocetirizine, the nNO values decreased (-494 ± 188) compared to placebo (155 ± 284 ppb; p < 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS:
The CIRANO study suggests that levocetirizine is effective on PER symptoms, including a transient improvement in loss of smell, and that this improvement concurs more with reduction of nasal inflammation than of nasal patency.
AuthorsJosé Maria Guilemany, Alfons García-Piñero, Isam Alobid, Silvia Centellas, Franklin Santiago Mariño, Antonio Valero, Manuel Bernal-Sprekelsen, César Picado, Joaquim Mullol
JournalInternational archives of allergy and immunology (Int Arch Allergy Immunol) Vol. 158 Issue 2 Pg. 184-90 ( 2012) ISSN: 1423-0097 [Electronic] Switzerland
PMID22286639 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Randomized Controlled Trial, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)
CopyrightCopyright © 2012 S. Karger AG, Basel.
Chemical References
  • Histamine H1 Antagonists, Non-Sedating
  • Placebos
  • Nitric Oxide
  • levocetirizine
  • Cetirizine
Topics
  • Adult
  • Cetirizine (pharmacology, therapeutic use)
  • Double-Blind Method
  • Female
  • Histamine H1 Antagonists, Non-Sedating (pharmacology, therapeutic use)
  • Humans
  • Inflammation (drug therapy)
  • Male
  • Nitric Oxide (analysis)
  • Olfaction Disorders (drug therapy, etiology)
  • Placebos
  • Rhinitis, Allergic, Seasonal (complications, drug therapy, physiopathology)
  • Smell

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