الفهرس 
BRONCHIAL ASTHMAOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
Asthma is one of the leading chronic diseases worldwide, affecting almost 300 million people globally. Various definitions of asthma exist and although none are universally accepted, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) attempt is one that is widely used; the WHO defines asthma as: “a chronic disease characterized by recurrent attacks of breathlessness and wheezing, which vary in severity and frequency from person to person” (WHO. 2010)
Currently numerous treatments aimed at managing the symptoms associated with asthma exist. Although these treatments may offer symptom relief, they have potential side effects that may be experienced by the patient. Furthermore, the majority of current treatments do not resolve the underlying immunological mechanism causing asthma. This has led to researchers shifting their attention to the possible use of immunotherapy; Allergen immunotherapy rehabilitates the immune system. This involves administering increasing doses of allergens to accustom the body to substances that are generally harmless (pollen, house dust mites) and thereby induce specific long-term tolerance. )khan and Siddiqui, 2012).
Immunotherapy can be administered by different routes amongst which we find injectable and oral vaccines. Injectable vaccines refers to the classical subcutaneous injection immunotherapy (SCIT) usually known as “allergy shots.” Oral vaccines refer to sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) where the allergens are administered as drops to the sublingual area, even though the vaccines may also include allergy tablets (Kleine-Tebbe et al., 2006).
Although several studies have demonstrated the efficacy of subcutaneous immunotherapy in allergic asthma, few have shown the same benefit using sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) in asthmatic patients (Pham-Thi etal 2007).
In this study we aimed to compare the clinical efficacy and immunological response in asthmatic patients after 3 months of subcutaneous immunotherapy with those after 3 months of sublingual immunotherapy
To achieve this goal, this study was carried out on eighty patients divided into two groups:
Group I: 40 adult asthmatic patients on sublingual immunotherapy for house dust mite allergens.
Group II: 40 adult asthmatic patients on subcutaneous immunotherapy for house dust mite allergens.
For both groups, the following items will be assessed before and after three months of treatment
1- Full clinical assessment including symptoms and drug scores. These symptoms were scored with a numerical analoge from 0 through 3.
2- Specific IgE for house dust mite by ELISA.
3- FEV1 (Forced expiratory volume in one second) which will be performed in the pulmonary functions laboratory at the chest diseases department, Ain shams university hospital.