COVID‐19 pandemic and allergen immunotherapy - an EAACI survey

Pfaar, Oliver; Agache, Ioana; Bonini, Matteo; Brough, Helen Annaruth; Chivato, Tomás; Del Giacco, Stefano R.; Gawlik, Radoslaw; Gelincik, Aslı; Hoffmann‐Sommergruber, Karin; Jutel, Marek; Klimek, Ludger; Knol, Edward F.; Lauerma, Antti; Ollert, Markus; O’Mahony, Liam; Mortz, Charlotte G.; Palomares, Oscar; Riggioni, Carmen; Schwarze, Jürgen; Skypala, Isabel; José Torres, María; Untersmayr, Eva; Walusiak‐Skorupa, Jolanta; Chaker, Adam; Giovannini, Mattia; Heffler, Enrico; Jensen‐Jarolim, Erika; Quecchia, Cristina; Sandoval‐Ruballos, Mónica; Sahiner, Umit; Tomić Spirić, Vesna; Alvaro‐Lozano, Montserrat

COVID‐19 pandemic and allergen immunotherapy - an EAACI survey

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Allergy - 2021 - Pfaar - COVID‐19 pandemic and allergen immunotherapy an EAACI survey.pdf(1.26 MB)

Published Version

Date

2021-03-02

Authors

Pfaar, Oliver

Agache, Ioana

Bonini, Matteo

Brough, Helen Annaruth

Chivato, Tomás

Del Giacco, Stefano R.

Gawlik, Radoslaw

Gelincik, Aslı

Hoffmann‐Sommergruber, Karin

Jutel, Marek

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Publisher

John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Published Version

10.1111/all.14793

Abstract

Background: As in many fields of medical care, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) resulted in an increased uncertainty regarding the safety of allergen immunotherapy (AIT). Therefore, the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) aimed to analyze the situation in different countries and to systematically collect all information available regarding tolerability and possible amendments in daily practice of sublingual AIT (SLIT), subcutaneous AIT (SCIT) for inhalant allergies and venom AIT. Methods: Under the framework of the EAACI, a panel of experts in the field of AIT coordinated by the Immunotherapy Interest Group set-up a web-based retrospective survey (SurveyMonkey®) including 27 standardized questions on practical and safety aspects on AIT in worldwide clinical routine. Results: 417 respondents providing AIT to their patients in daily routine answered the survey. For patients (without any current symptoms to suspect COVID-19), 60% of the respondents informed of not having initiated SCIT (40% venom AIT, 35% SLIT) whereas for the maintenance phase of AIT, SCIT was performed by 75% of the respondents (74% venom AIT, 89% SLIT). No tolerability concern arises from this preliminary analysis. 16 physicians reported having performed AIT despite (early) symptoms of COVID-19 and/or a positive test result for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Conclusions: This first international retrospective survey in atopic diseases investigated practical aspects and tolerability of AIT during the COVID-19 pandemic and gave no concerns regarding reduced tolerability under real-life circumstances. However, the data indicate an undertreatment of AIT, which may be temporary, but could have a long-lasting negative impact on the clinical care of allergic patients.

Keywords

Allergen immunotherapy (AIT) , COVID-19 , Pandemic , SARS-CoV-2 , Survey

Citation

Pfaar, O., Agache, I., Bonini, M., Brough, H. A., Chivato, T., Del Giacco, S. R., Gawlik, R., Gelincik, A., Hoffmann-Sommergruber, K., Jutel, M., Klimek, L., Knol, E. F., Lauerma, A., Ollert, M., O’Mahony, L., Mortz, C. G., Palomares, O., Riggioni, C., Schwarze, J., Skypala, I., Torres, M. J., Untersmayr, E., Walusiak-Skorupa, J., Chaker, A., Giovannini, M., Heffler, E., Jensen-Jarolim, E., Quecchia, C., Sandoval-Ruballos, M., Sahiner, U., Tomić Spirić, V. and Alvaro-Lozano, M. (2021) 'COVID-19 pandemic and allergen immunotherapy - an EAACI survey', Allergy, 76(11), pp. 3504-3516. doi: 10.1111/all.14793https://doi.org/10.1111/all.14793