Intranasal CO2 Patient Allergy Relief Trial

Temporary nasal allergy relief could be supplied by carbon dioxide, according to initial study results.

Intranasal carbon dioxide has not yet been approved by drug regulators to treat patients who are allergic to mould, dust or other substances. However, a trial is currently underway and it's being sponsored by US firm Capnia Incorporated.

Capnia is presently working on portable technology that, subject to approval, would give patients the power to self-medicate.

The trial involves a total of 348 nasal allergy patients, divided into two groups. One is getting one of a range of CO2 doses for a range of timespans (between 10 and 30 seconds) while the other is acting as a control group and being given a placebo.

So far, the researchers running the trial have observed the optimum results are evident in patients getting the highest amount of CO2 for the shortest time - with clear reductions in associated symptoms like sneezing and itching.

Intranasal CO2 Trial

Details of the intranasal CO2 trial appear in an Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology piece, which describes how the allergy relief it provides lasts for approximately four hours, giving it about the same effectiveness as typical antihistamines.

That's according to Creighton University's Professor Thomas Casale who, in conversation with news agency Reuters, explained how it could give patients with allergic conditions a new form of relief.

Patient Nasal Allergy Symptoms

Currently, in approved substance terms, there's nothing that can outperform corticosteroids when it comes to suppressing patients' nasal allergy symptoms. However, there's also a stigma attached: many patients simply don't want to be involved with steroid-based treatments.

"There are still a lot of people who don't like to take medication", Casale stated, "and might view this [Intranasal CO2] as a 'natural' treatment."

No information has yet been supplied on how much the treatment might cost, if it was given the go-ahead to be put into mass production. However, Pharma News will supply further coverage of this alternative in future News Items.