[Analysis of early, late-phase and delayed skin reactions against 10 groups of antigens in 420 patients with allergic asthma].

Immediate, late phase and delayed skin reactions against ten group of allergens were investigated in 420 patients with allergic asthma. The wheal and flare reaction were characteristic for type I IgE-mediated hypersensitivity reaction in human skin. This reaction develops rapidly after injection of antigen, peaks in 10-30 minutes, and then subsides within a few hours. However, careful observation for longer periods has shown that in many instances a late inflammatory response also appears at the same site and is quite different in appearance from the initial reaction. This late phase reaction sometimes lasts for 24 hours and it is characterized by a dense cellular infiltrate and is more oedematous than the early reaction. These late phase reactions can also be seen following challenge of the nasal mucosa and bronchi of allergic subjects and may be of major importance in the development of chronic asthma. In this study, we have investigated immediate, late phase also delayed phase skin reactivity incidence of the allergic asthma patients.