title: Prospective, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicentre study on the effect of high-dose, intravenous immunoglobulin in children and adolescents with severe bronchial asthma.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  In order to study the effect of high-dose, intravenous immunoglobulin (i.v.IG) in severe childhood asthma, we investigated 31 children and adolescents (15 girls, 16 boys) aged 9-22 years (median age of 14 years) suffering from severe bronchial asthma.
  
  
  METHODS
  In a prospective, double-blind fashion, patients received either four doses of i.v.IG (1 g/kg body weight) or identical doses of intravenous human serum albumin. The first two doses were given on two consecutive days, followed by two further doses at 4 week intervals.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was no statistical difference in the actively treated group when compared with the placebo group in symptom-score, bronchial hyperreactivity or peak-flow-variability. There was a trend for fewer total days of upper respiratory tract infections and also symptom-scores in the i.v.IG group but these did not reach statistical significance.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our data indicate that treatment with i.v.IG in asthmatic children did not show a significant reduction in the incidence of upper respiratory tract infections, but the patients who did have upper respiratory infections in the i.v.IG-group appear to have less protracted infections. Severity and bronchial hyperreactivity do not seem to be affected by the treatment as performed in our study.
authors.affiliation: University of Children's Hospital, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Niggemann
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Leupold
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Schuster
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Schuster
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: v Berg
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Grübl
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: v d Hardt
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Eibl
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Wahn
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001249:Asthma / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy*; D002648:Child; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D006969:Hypersensitivity, Immediate / Q000628:therapy; D016756:Immunoglobulins, Intravenous / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012141:Respiratory Tract Infections / Q000150:complications
chemical_list: D016756:Immunoglobulins, Intravenous