Classification of Seasonal Allergic Rhinitis Patients by Prospective Patient‐Recorded Symptoms: The @ IT .2020 Project
Year: 2026
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: BACKGROUND: Seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR) has been so far classified according to frequency and severity by retrospective information based on the ARIA (Allergic Rhinitis and its Impact on Asthma) classification. Electronic symptom diaries (e-Diaries) are feasible tools to collect prospective patient-reported data. OBJECTIVE: To test the consistency between prospectively recorded symptoms and retrospective ARIA classification and to generate a new SAR classification based on prospective e-Diary data. METHODS: Within the @IT.2020 multicentre observational study, we recruited 815 children and adults with SAR in nine study centres from Mediterranean countries. Participants recorded daily organ-specific (Rhinoconjunctivitis Total Symptom Score; RTSS) and general symptoms (visual analogue scale, VAS) plus quality-of-life measures via an e-Diary app. Retrospective clinical questionnaires were performed at the beginning (T0) and end (T1) of the pollen season. Unsupervised clustering analyses around medoids were implemented to classify SAR by prospective patient-reported data. RESULTS: One third (56/164, 34.1%) and almost half (173/366, 47.3%) of the patients retrospectively over- or underestimated the frequency of their symptoms, respectively. A moderate correlation was found between SAR severity reported at T1 and prospectively recorded symptom severity. An unsupervised clustering approach was able to identify distinct groups (mild, moderate, severe cluster) of patients based on the prospective severity of organ-specific (RTSS) and overall symptoms (VAS), as well as quality of life criteria. CONCLUSIONS: A significant recall bias regarding frequency and severity of symptoms emerged by comparing the retrospective ARIA classification with prospectively recorded data by an e-Diary. A prospective approach to SAR classification, inspired by the retrospective ARIA classification, may facilitate a more precise evaluation of the patient for improved disease management.
Source: Allergy
DOI: 10.1111/all.70447
Authors: Stephanie Dramburg, Camilo J. Hernandez Toro, Ulrike Grittner, Ekaterina Potapova, Alessandro Travaglini, Salvatore Tripodi, Stefania Arasi, Simone Pelosi, Francesco Monnati, Aydan Acar Şahin, Xenophon Aggelidis, Andrea Barbalace, Anne Bourgoin, Blerina Bregu, Maria Antonia Brighetti, Elsa Caeiro, Sule Caglayan Sozmen, Lucia Caminiti, Denis Charpin, Mariana Couto, Luís Delgado, Andrea Di Rienzo Businco, Claire Dimier, Maria V. Dimou, João A. Fonseca, Ozlem Goksel, Dolores Hernandez, Tara Maria Hoffmann, Dah Tay Jang, Fusun Kalpaklioglu, Blerta Lame, Ruth Llusar, Michael P. Makris, Angel Mazon, Eris Mesonjesi, Antonio Nieto, Ayse Bilge Öztürk, Laurie Pahus, Giovanni Battista Pajno, Ilenia Panasiti, Nikolaos G. Papadopoulos, Elisabetta Pellegrini, Ana Margarida Pereira, Mariana Pereira, Munevver Pinar, Alfred Priftanji, Fotis Psarros, Cansin Sackesen, Ifigenia Sfika, Javier Suarez, Michel Thibaudon, Ulas Uguz, Valentine Verdier, Valeria Villella, Paraskevi Xepapadaki, Duygu Yazici, Paolo M. Matricardi
Institutions: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Ospedale Sandro Pertini, Policlinico Casilino, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, Istituti di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico, Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Fraunhofer Institute for Translational Medicine and Pharmacology, Ankara University, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, University General Hospital Attikon, University of Messina, Aix-Marseille Université, Assistance Publique Hôpitaux de Marseille, Hôpital de la Timone, Mother Teresa Hospital, University of Évora, Sociedade Portuguesa de Alergologia e Imunologia Clínica, Universidade do Porto, CUF Porto Hospital, Panagiotis & Aglaia Kyriakou Children's Hospital, Ege University, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria La Fe, Kırıkkale University, Istanbul Medeniyet University, Inserm, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, Centre de Recherche en CardioVasculaire et Nutrition, University of Manchester, Royal Manchester Children's Hospital, Agenzia Regionale per la Protezione dell'Ambiente della Calabria, Athens Naval & Veterans Hospital, Koç University, Universidad de Oviedo, Réseau National de Surveillance Aérobiologique, University of Zurich, Koç Üniversitesi Translasyonel Tıp Araştırma Merkezi
Language: English
Subfield: Immunology and Allergy
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $5,300
Award: G8357696078
OpenAlex ID: W7204995204