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Doan S, Papadopoulos NG, Lee JK, Leonardi S, Manti S, Lau S, Rondon C, Sharma V, Pleyer U, Jaumont X, Lazarewicz SB. Vernal keratoconjunctivitis: Current immunological and clinical evidence and the potential role of omalizumab. World Allergy Organ J 2023; 16:100788. [PMID: 37389200 PMCID: PMC10300397 DOI: 10.1016/j.waojou.2023.100788] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2023] [Revised: 05/08/2023] [Accepted: 05/21/2023] [Indexed: 07/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Vernal keratoconjunctivitis (VKC) is a severe ocular allergic disease characterized by chronic inflammation of the cornea and conjunctiva that may lead to loss of visual acuity and blindness. The disease occurs primarily in children and is more common in geographical regions characterized by warm temperatures and high humidity. The clinical manifestations of VKC, when inadequately treated, may lead to severe complications and corneal damage. The prevalence of allergen sensitization, specific serum immunoglobulin E (IgE), and specific tear IgE was reported in approximately 55%-60% of patients with VKC, confirming the involvement of IgE-mediated and non-IgE-mediated mechanisms in the pathophysiology of the condition. This article explores current knowledge on the immunological pathways of VKC and the role of the monoclonal anti-IgE antibody, omalizumab, in its management. The review evaluated the effects of omalizumab beyond the direct IgE-mediated reactions and discusses its potential as a therapeutic target for VKC. Multiple retrospective analyses, case series, and case reports have reported the effectiveness of omalizumab in the management of VKC. A summary of the clinical data from these studies revealed that in children with VKC omalizumab treatment was well tolerated with improvement or resolution of ocular symptoms, reduction in steroid use, and enhancement of quality of life. Omalizumab may serve as a promising treatment option for VKC due to its ability to target both IgE-mediated and non-IgE-mediated pathophysiological pathways. Larger, controlled clinical trials are needed to support these findings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Serge Doan
- Ophthalmology Department of Fondation A de Rothschild and Hôpital Bichat, 25-29 Rue Manin, 75019, Paris, France
| | - Nikolaos G. Papadopoulos
- Allergy Department, 2nd Pediatric Clinic, University of Athens, Athens, Greece
- Division of Infection, Immunity and Respiratory Medicine, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Jason K. Lee
- Evidence Based Medical Educator Inc., Toronto Allergy and Asthma Clinic, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Salvatore Leonardi
- Pediatric Respiratory Unit, AOUP “G. Rodolico-San Marco”, University of Catania, Catania, Italy
| | - Sara Manti
- Pediatric Respiratory Unit, AOUP “G. Rodolico-San Marco”, University of Catania, Catania, Italy
- Pediatric Unit, Department of Human Pathology of the Adult and Developmental Age “Gaetano Barresi”, University of Messina, Messina, Italy
| | - Susanne Lau
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Respiratory Medicine, Immunology and Critical Care Medicine, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Carmen Rondon
- Allergy Research Group, Instituto de Investigación Biomedica de Malaga (IBIMA)-Plataforma BIONAND.RICORS “Inflammatory Diseases”, ARADyAL, Malaga, Spain
- Allergy Unit, Hospital Regional Universitario de Malaga, Malaga, Spain
| | - Vibha Sharma
- Lydia Becker Institute of Immunology and Inflammation, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Uwe Pleyer
- Department of Ophthalmology, CVK, Charité Universitätsmedizin, Berlin, Germany
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Doherty S, Mulholland M, Shields M, McCrossan P. Can omalizumab be used effectively to treat severe conjunctivitis in children with asthma? A case example and review of the literature. World J Clin Pediatr 2021; 10:48-52. [PMID: 34316438 PMCID: PMC8290994 DOI: 10.5409/wjcp.v10.i4.48] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2021] [Revised: 02/12/2021] [Accepted: 05/07/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
A 14-year-old girl with poorly controlled asthma attended the difficult-to-treat asthma clinic for review. Although she has eosinophilia and significantly raised immunoglobulin E levels, she is not currently a candidate for omalizumab (Xolair). She also suffers from chronic urticaria, eosinophilic eosophagitis and severe conjunctivitis. You wonder if omalizumab would be effective in treating her multiple atopic conditions, in particular her troublesome conjunctivitis. PubMed was searched using the following search terms: (Omalizumab) or (Xolair) and (conjunctivitis). Searches were conducted in November 2020. Abstracts were selected for full text review if the study population identified asthma as a comorbidity. Non-paediatric studies and those that were not written in English were excluded. The use of omalizumab has the potential to be effective in the treatment of conjunctivitis associated with asthma and other atopic conditions. However, research is needed to address the question, in the form of multicenter, double-blind randomized control trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen Doherty
- Department of Paediatrics, Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children, Belfast BT12 6BA, United Kingdom
| | - Melissa Mulholland
- Department of Paediatric Education and Simulation, Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children, Belfast BT12 6BA, United Kingdom
| | - Michael Shields
- Department of Child Health, Queens University Belfast, Belfast BT12 6BJ, United Kingdom
| | - Patrick McCrossan
- Centre of Medical Education, Queens University Belfast, School of Medicine, Belfast BT9 7BL, United Kingdom
- Department of Paediatric Respiratory, Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children, Belfast BT12 6BA, United Kingdom
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