Ragweed SLIT Tablet Improves Symptoms in Children With Ragweed Allergic Rhinitis

Ragweed pollen
Ragweed sublingual immunotherapy tablet improved symptoms and decreased the need for rescue medication in the largest allergy immunotherapy trial in children with ragweed allergic rhinitis with or without conjunctivitis.

This article is part of Pulmonology Advisor‘s coverage of the ACAAI 2019 meeting, taking place in Houston, TX. Our staff will report on medical research related to allergies, asthma, and more conducted by experts in the field. Check back regularly for more news from ACAAI 2019.


HOUSTON — Ragweed sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) tablet improved symptoms and decreased the need for rescue medication in the largest allergy immunotherapy trial in children with ragweed allergic rhinitis with or without conjunctivitis, according to research presented at the  American College of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology Annual Scientific Meeting, held November 7 to 11, in Houston, Texas.

In this international double-blind placebo-controlled trial, researchers randomly assigned polysensitized children (N=1025) aged 5 to 17 years with ragweed allergic rhinitis (with or without conjunctivitis) and with or without asthma (forced expiratory volume in 1 second ≥80% predicted) to receive a daily ragweed SLIT tablet (12 Amb a 1-unit dose) or placebo for <28 weeks (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02478398).

The primary end point was the average total combined score (sum of rhinoconjunctivitis daily symptom score and daily medication score) during peak ragweed season. Secondary end points included average total combined score during the entire ragweed season, as well as the daily symptom and daily medication scores during peak season.

Compared with placebo, the relative improvements in the total combined score with ragweed SLIT tablet were -38.3% (95% CI, -46.0% to -29.7%; least square [LS] mean difference, 2.73; P <.001) during peak season and -32.4% (95% CI, -40.7% to -23.3%; LS mean difference, 1.86; P <.001) during the entire season. Both the daily symptom and daily medication scores improved with ragweed SLIT tablet vs placebo by -35.4% (95% CI, -43.2% to -26.1%; LS mean difference, 1.40; P <.001) and -47.7% (95% CI, -59.8 to -32.5%; LS mean difference, 1.84; P <.001).

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Treatment was well-tolerated in the study cohort, and there were no reports of anaphylaxis, airway compromise, or severe treatment-related systemic allergic reactions.

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Reference

Nolte H, Bernstein D, Nelson H, Ellis A, Kleine-Tebbe J, Lu S. Efficacy and safety of ragweed SLIT-tablet from a large trial in children with allergic rhinoconjunctivitis. Presented at: American College of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology Annual Scientific Meeting 2019; November 7-11, 2019; Houston, TX. Abstract P450.