Iota-Carrageenan nasal spray relieves grass pollen allergic symptoms!

The use of iota-carrageenan nasal spray was found to be a safe, well-tolerated prophylactic therapy which lessens the nasal allergic symptoms in people with grass pollen allergy, a study published in the International Journal of General Medicine showed.

Nicole Unger-Manhart and researchers examined if Callergin, a nasal spray therapy comprising iota-carrageenan (natural polysaccharides extracted from red algae which form a barrier between the allergens and nasal mucosa) was safe and effective for allergic rhinitis (AR) or seasonal allergies.

A total of 42 adults with grass pollen allergy underwent randomization to receive Callergin nasal spray, saline nasal spray (as comparator) and no therapy (the untreated group). The therapy blocks involved either prophylactic use of the assigned therapy or no therapy, followed by a 3-hour exposure to allergens, with a 7-day washout course. The primary outcome measure was the average change from baseline in the "Total Nasal Symptom Score" (TNSS), which includes scores for runny nose, itching, sneezing and congestion, noted every 15 minutes over 3 hours.

In all the study participants, a notable TNSS increase was observed when exposed to grass pollen for three hours. The mean TNSS change from baseline during this time was lower but not statistically significant when the study participants received Callergin nasal spray compared to no therapy. Also, the mean TNSS significantly reduced after the use of Callergin nasal spray than no therapy (untreated 8.29 ± 2.64; Callergin nasal spray 7.70 ± 2.56; difference 0.60 points p = 0.028). Although all nasal symptoms played a part in this effect, runny nose and congestion were the major contributors. Minor reduction in nasal secretion weight was found with Callergin treatment, the researchers concluded.