Asia Pacific allergy
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Asia Pacific allergy · Jan 2012
Vitamin D serum levels in allergic rhinitis: any difference from normal population?
Recently it has been suggested that, the worldwide increase in allergic diseases such as asthma, allergic rhinitis and food allergy is associated with low vitamin D intake. ⋯ Measuring vitamin D serum levels could be helpful in the routine assessment of patients with allergic rhinitis in Iran.
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Asia Pacific allergy · Jan 2012
Magnesium sulfate for acute asthma in adults: a systematic literature review.
Magnesium sulfate (MgSO(4)) has been considered as an adjunct therapy for severe and life-threatening asthma exacerbation. The literature search was performed using MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Library and Google Scholar to summarize the current state of knowledge regarding magnesium therapy in acute exacerbation of adult asthma. A total of 16 trials and 4 meta-analyses were identified. ⋯ Additionally, results from 4 surveys were examined on the gaps between knowledge and practice, and on the barrier to the use of MgSO(4) at emergency departments. This literature review summarized the up-to-date evidence on the issues regarding the use of MgSO(4) for acute asthma. We expect more studies to be conducted for evidence making in the Asian-Pacific regions.
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Blue dyes such as Patent Blue V (PBV) have been used in medical procedures for decades, and in the United Kingdom they are routinely utilised in sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) for staging the axilla in early breast cancer. However, it has long been recognised that such dyes are associated with anaphylaxis. It has recently been estimated in a prospective study that allergy to PBV occurs with a frequency of 0.9%. ⋯ The measurement of serum mast-cell tryptase (MCT) and skin prick test (SPT) are used in the investigation of suspected anaphylaxis because positive results are supportive of type-1 mediated hypersensitivity. Here we report the clinical features, MCT results and SPT results that pertain to a series of four patients referred to our drug allergy clinic with suspected anaphylaxis following SLNB. We recommend that all patients that show clinical evidence of allergy following exposure to PBV are referred to a specialist drug allergy service for further evaluation to investigate the cause.