Various species of weed plants with allergenic properties are widespread on the territory of Ukraine. The most common and clinically important weed plant allergens are present in the pollen of the wormwood, ragweed, goosefoot, plantain and Russian thistle. Allergy to the weed plant pollen is regarded as the late wave of pollinosis. The latter lasts from the second half of summer (the end of July-August) till the first frosts. Seasonal allergic rhinitis, or pollinosis, is revealed by a clear annual seasonal prevalence of symptoms and signs of allergic rhinitis and conjunctivitis, food sensitization and weather sensitivity, these disorders significantly decreasing the quality of life of patients. Material and methods. 2050 patients aged from 3 to 65 years old were examined, of which 820 (40%) - Central (Kyiv, Vinnytsya, Chernihiv oblasts), 580 (28.3%) - Western (Lviv, Ternopil, Ivano-Frankivsk, Volyn oblasts), 650 (31.7%) of the Eastern (Kharkiv, Sumy) regions of Ukraine. Results and discussion. Regional peculiarities of allergy manifestations were analyzed with use of skin tests, consideration of clinical symptoms and signs, and molecular allergy diagnosis. Monosensitization most commonly occurred to house dust mites, mixtures of spring trees, mixtures of herbs, cats and Alternaria alternata. Simultaneously, most patients were polysensitized and demonstrated positive skin prick tests to the wormwood and ragweed. Positive skin tests to the wormwood were revealed 1.2 times more frequently in patients from the west provinces versus those from the central ones. On the contrary, sensitization to the ragweed was observed 3.2 times more commonly in patients from the Central Region and 1.3 times more in patients from the East Region versus the Central one. Data of component diagnosis confirmed results of skin tests in 80 % of cases. According to the results of molecular studies, immunotherapy with allergens was provided during 2 years. The treatment involved 280 patients from the West, Central and East Regions of Ukraine, who made up the treatment group, and 90 cases, who formed the control group. The patients, who were given sublingual allergen immunotherapy, revealed reliably lower values by the visual analogue scale (p<0.05) versus the patients, for whom symptomatic therapy was administered. The use of sublingual allergen immunotherapy with standardized medical allergens for allergic rhinitis in patients at different age is an effective and safe method of treatment, which makes it possible to rapidly control the patients’ state and improve their quality of life. For preventive purposes and in order to avoid contact with allergens, it is necessary to take into account regional peculiarities of the spread of allergenic components of various plants. Conclusions. In order to improve the quality of life of patients with pollen allergy in future, it is necessary to modify the green environment of settlements taking into account the problems of allergic people.
Keywords: wormwood, ragweed, molecular diagnosis, visual analogue scale, efficacy of sublingual allergen immunotherapy
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