Efficacy of intranasal glucocorticosteroids in allergic rhinitis as measured using the therapeutic index

Abstract

At a time when the risk of developing an allergic disease, including allergic rhinitis, is real, there is the urgent need to implement effective therapy that can deliver a substantial reduction in the typical nasal symptoms and other co-existing conditions. The response to this need is intranasal glucocorticosteroids, which are regarded as the most effective category of drugs and recommended in allergic rhinitis cases, according to the ARIA 2010 report experts. The meta-analysis of the therapeutic efficacy/effectiveness of intranasal glucocorticosteroids, which involved measuring their impact on nasal symptoms, eyesight and other possible adverse effects during the treatment process, indicates that mometasone furoate is the most effective substance (7 points), with triamcinolone measured at 5 points on the scale applied in the analysis. The lowest values were recorded for fluticasone furoate and beclomethasone dipropionate, at 0.33 and 0.57 points, respectively. Given the potential risk of diseases that accompany allergic rhinitis, which include bronchial asthma, adequate therapy not only effectively minimises the risk of adverse effects, but also delivers a considerable improvement in the quality of life for the patient and in the functioning of the health care system.