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GEMA 2009
 

Effect of Bilastine Upon the Ocular Symptoms of Allergic Rhinoconjunctivitis
 
J Bartra1,2, J Mullol2, J Montoro3, I Jáuregui4, A del Cuvillo5, I Dávila6, M Ferrer7, J Sastre2,8, A Valero1,2
1Allergy Unit. Department of Pneumology and Respiratory Allergy. Clinic Institute of Thorax (ICT). Clinical and Experimental Respiratory Immunoallergy (IDIBAPS). Clinic Hospital. Barcelona, Spain. Biomedical Research Centre of Respiratory Diseases (CIBERES)
2Rhinology Unit & Smell Clinic, ENT Department. Clinical and Experimental Respiratory Immunoallergy (IDIBAPS). Clinic Hospital. Barcelona, Spain. Biomedical Research Centre Network for Respiratory Diseases (CIBERES)
3Allergy Section, Elda General Hospital, Alicante, Spain
4Department of Allergy, Basurto Hospital. Bilbao, Spain
5Astarté ENT Centre. Cádiz, Spain
6Department of Immunoallergy, Salamanca University Healthcare Complex, Salamanca, Spain
7Department of Allergy. Clínica Universidad de Navarra. Medical School. Pamplona, Spain
8Department of Allergy, Jiménez Díaz Foundation, Madrid, Spain. Biomedical Research Centre Network for Respiratory Diseases (CIBERES)
 

J Investig Allergol Clin Immunol 2011; Vol. 21, Suppl. 3: 24-33
 

 Abstract


Ocular symptoms often accompany allergic rhinitis and can be as or even more bothersome for the patient than the actual nasal symptoms.
Ocular manifestations of allergic rhinoconjunctivitis may result from both direct allergen-mediated mast cell stimulation on the surface of the eye and naso-ocular reflexes – histamine being one of the mediators of symptoms onset. An H1 antihistamine would be the first line treatment for allergic conjunctivitis. Since allergic conjunctivitis is always (or almost always) accompanied by nasal symptoms, a second-generation H1 antihistamine administered via oral route is the drug of choice for jointly managing both the nasal and the ocular symptoms – minimizing the impact of the effects inherent to first-generation H1 antihistamine, including particularly drowsiness. Bilastine is a new H1 antihistamine with an excellent safety profile, developed for the treatment of allergic rhinoconjunctivitis and urticaria, with potency similar to that of cetirizine and desloratadine, and superior to that of fexofenadine. This new drug has been shown to be effective in controlling the ocular symptoms of allergic rhinoconjunctivitis.

Key words: H1 antihistamines. Bilastine. Allergic conjunctivitis. Allergic rhinoconjunctivitis.