Provocations with perfume in the eyes induce airway symptoms in patients with sensory hyperreactivity

Background: In earlier studies, we have shown that patients with a history of sensory hyperreactivity develop asthma‐like symptoms when exposed to strong scents, even if they cannot smell any scent. Methods: For study of possible pathophysiologic mechanisms behind sensory hyperreactivity, the patien...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Allergy (Copenhagen) 1999-05, Vol.54 (5), p.495-499
Main Authors: Millqvist, E, Bengtsson, U, Löwhagen, O
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Aged
Allergic diseases
asthma
asthma‐like
Biological and medical sciences
Bronchial Hyperreactivity - immunology
Bronchial Provocation Tests
Eye - immunology
Female
Humans
Immunopathology
Male
Medical sciences
Middle Aged
multiple chemical sensitivity
Multiple Chemical Sensitivity - immunology
Perfume - adverse effects
Respiration
Respiratory and ent allergic diseases
scents
Sensation - physiology
sensory hyperreactivity
sick‐building syndrome
Single-Blind Method
Smell - physiology
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Background: In earlier studies, we have shown that patients with a history of sensory hyperreactivity develop asthma‐like symptoms when exposed to strong scents, even if they cannot smell any scent. Methods: For study of possible pathophysiologic mechanisms behind sensory hyperreactivity, the patients' airways and eyes were separately exposed to a common inducing factor, perfume. Eleven patients with a history of hyperreactivity to chemical trigger factors, such as perfume, were provoked single‐blindly in a placebo‐controlled, randomized study. During airway exposure, the eyes were covered and, during the eye exposure, the patients inhaled fresh air. A special face mask or a nose clip was used to avoid any smell. Results: During the 30‐min exposure to perfume, there was a gradual increase in three main symptoms; i.e., eye irritation, cough, and dyspnea, after both the airway and eye exposures. The increases were significant compared with placebo. Conclusions: Asthma‐like and other symptoms, such as irritation of the eyes, may be induced by exposure of both the airways and the eyes in patients with sensory hyperreactivity. This points to the importance of studying the sensory nervous system, not only in the airways, but also in other organs.
ISSN:0105-4538
1398-9995
DOI:10.1034/j.1398-9995.1999.00031.x