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- Asthma is more frequently associated with non-allergic than allergic rhinitis in Portuguese patientsPublication . Lourenço, Olga; Fonseca, AM; Barata, Luis TabordaBackground: Rhinitis prevalence is increasing worldwide and is frequently associated with asthma, for which it is a risk factor. The aims of the study were to characterise the adult population with rhinitis attending the Cova da Beira Hospital Allergy Clinic, and to assess the relationship between rhinitis and asthma. Methods: In total, 686 patients were characterised by clinical history and anterior rhinoscopy, and classified according to international guidelines. Atopy was determined by skin prick testing to aeroallergens and quantification of specific IgE. Results: Seventy two percent of patients had allergic rhinitis (AR), and 28% had non-allergic rhinitis (NAR). NAR was more frequently associated with older age, perennial symptoms and female gender. NAR patients more frequently had bronchial asthma. In addition, more NAR than AR patients also had drug allergy, pharyngitis, sinusitis and urticaria. AR patients with nasal polyps more frequently had asthma. Grass pollen and mites were the major sensitisers for AR patients. Sensitisation profiles were not significantly different between urban- and ruralbased AR patients. Conclusions: Asthma was more frequently associated with non-allergic than with allergic rhinitis. The two types of rhinitis did not differ in clinical severity. Although sensitisation profiles were not different between the urban and rural patients, allergic rhinitis prevalence was higher in urban patients.
- Haemodialysis in Diabetic Patients Modulates Inflammatory Cytokine Profile and T Cell Activation StatusPublication . Almeida, Ana Catarina Silva; Lourenço, Olga; Fonseca, A. M.Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a common complication in patients with diabetes, and most of them need renal replacement therapy such as haemodialysis (HD). These patients have a high tendency to develop infections and exhibit anomalies in the immune system. The objective of this study was to assess the expression of activation-related markers on T cells, as well as to quantify inflammatory cytokines, before and after a single HD session in DN patients. The study involved DN patients under HD treatment who signed an informed consent form. Blood samples before and after one HD session were collected, to analyse the expression of CD25, CD69 and CD71 in T cells. We also quantified IL-12p70, IL-8, IL-10, IL-1β, TNF-α and IL-6 in serum samples using the cytometric bead array technique. After the HD session, there was an increase in the CD4/CD8 ratio due to significant alterations in both subsets. The relative percentage of CD25+ cells and CD8+ CD25+ increased significantly after the HD session, while the relative percentage of CD69 T cells decreased. There was a significant decrease in the CD25 mean fluorescence intensity values for CD4+ T, as well as in the case of CD71 in T cells after the HD session. Regarding cytokine synthesis, we found a significant increase in IL-10 and IL-6 and a decrease in IL-8 after HD session. This study showed that a HD session in DN patients affects the T cell activation status in the two major subpopulations and differentially modulates the production of inflammatory cytokines.