Increased
asthma severity is not only associated with enhanced recurrent hospitalization and mortality but also with higher social costs. Several cases of
asthma are atopic in nature, with the trigger for acute
asthma attacks and chronic worsening of
inflammation being
allergens inducing an immune,
IgE mediated response. Anti-inflammatory treatments are effective for most of
asthma patients, but there are subjects whose disease is incompletely controlled by inhaled or systemic
corticosteroids and these patients account for about 50% of the healthcare costs of
asthma.
Omalizumab is a
biological engineered, humanized recombinant monoclonal
anti-IgE antibody developed for the treatment of allergic diseases and with clear efficacy in adolescent and adult patients with severe allergic
asthma. The
anti-IgE antibody inhibits
IgE functions blocking free serum
IgE and inhibiting their binding to cellular receptors. By reducing serum
IgE levels and
IgE receptor expression on inflammatory cells in the context of allergic cascade,
omalizumab has demonstrated to be a very useful treatment of atopic
asthma, improving quality of life of patients with severe persistent allergic
asthma that is inadequately controlled by currently available
asthma medications. Several trials have demonstrated that this
therapy is well tolerated and significantly improves symptoms and disease control, reducing
asthma exacerbations and the need to use high dosage of inhaled
corticosteroids.