title: Safety of cluster specific immunotherapy with a modified high-dose house dust mite extract.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Although the efficacy and safety of high dose hypoallergenic mite subcutaneous immunotherapy (SCIT) using a conventional administration schedule has already been demonstrated, there is no reported experience on the safety of these extracts with cluster schedules. We wanted to determine whether the use of a cluster schedule of a hypoallergenic allergen with a high concentration of house dust mite allergens commonly used in normal practice was safe and well-tolerated in patients with dust mite allergy.
  
  
  METHODS
  Multicentre, observational, retrospective study of dust mite allergic patients treated with a cluster schedule of SCIT (Acaroid; Day 1: 300/300 therapeutic units, TU--Day 8: 1000/1000 TU--Day 15: 3000/3000 TU) in 23 Spanish sites.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Cluster schedule was used on 434 patients (40.1% children), with a total of 3256 doses (38.2% in children). There were 88 clinically relevant adverse reactions, 79 out of them local and 9 systemic (but mild-moderate) that amounted to 2.7% of all the administered doses. All the patients fulfilled the cluster schedule.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Cluster schedule with high dose hypoallergenic mite-SCIT was safe and well-tolerated in routine clinical practice. Therefore, its use could reduce the costs and time needed to achieve the desired maintenance dose and increase compliance.
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Allergy Unit, University Hospital La Fe, Valencia, Spain.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nieto García
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nevot Falcó
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Carrillo Díaz
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Cumplido Bonny
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Izquierdo Calderón
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hernández-Peña
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D039741:Antigens, Dermatophagoides / Q000276:immunology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003888:Desensitization, Immunologic / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000628:therapy*; D008875:Middle Aged; D039981:Pyroglyphidae / Q000276:immunology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies
chemical_list: D039741:Antigens, Dermatophagoides