Fast onset of action of sublingual immunotherapy in house dust mite-induced allergic rhinitis: A multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

Objectives/Hypothesis To investigate how quickly an allergic rhinitis (AR) patients' symptoms will improve with sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT). Study Design Double‐blind placebo study. Methods This is a multicenter, randomized, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled study of SLIT used to treat house dust mite‐induced AR. A total of 120 AR patients, aged 4 to 60 years, were treated for 6 months and randomized into two groups: 1) SLIT with Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (D.p.) and Dermatophagoides farina (D.f.) extract (n = 60) ; and 2) matched placebo controls (n = 60). Symptom, medications received, and a visual analog scale score were recorded during the whole study. Serum‐specific IgE and IgG4 to D. p. and D. f. were assessed before and after the treatment. Results Eighty‐five patients (70.8%) completed the study. Twelve patients (20%) chose to withdraw from the SLIT group, but none because of serious adverse effects. The total symptom and visual analog scores VAS in the SLIT group decreased significantly when compared to the placebo controls (P