Z. Brzoza

The EAACI/GA 2 LEN/EDF/WAO Guideline for the definition, classification, diagnosis, and management of urticaria: the 2013 revision and update

This guideline is the result of a systematic literature review using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) methodology and a structured consensus conference held on 28 and 29 November 2012, in Berlin. It is a joint initiative of the Dermatology Section of the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI), the EU-funded network of excellence, the Global Allergy and Asthma European Network (GA(2) LEN), the European Dermatology Forum (EDF), and the World Allergy Organization (WAO) with the participation of delegates of 21 national and international societies. Urticaria is a frequent, mast cell-driven disease, presenting with wheals, angioedema, or both. The life-time prevalence for acute urticaria is approximately 20%. Chronic spontaneous urticaria and other chronic forms of urticaria do not only cause a decrease in quality of life, but also affect performance at work and school and, as such, are members of the group of severe allergic diseases. This guideline covers the definition and classification of urticaria, taking into account the recent progress in identifying its causes, eliciting factors and pathomechanisms. In addition, it outlines evidence-based diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for the different subtypes of urticaria. This guideline was acknowledged and accepted by the European Union of Medical Specialists (UEMS).

The German version of the Chronic Urticaria Quality-of-Life Questionnaire: factor analysis, validation, and initial clinical findings.

Background:u2002 Chronic urticaria (CU) is a common skin disorder that causes a substantial burden on patients’ quality‐of‐life (QoL). The aim of this work was to generate and validate a German version of the Chronic Urticaria Quality of Life Questionnaire (CU‐Q2oL) and to provide reference assessments of QoL.

Recommendations for assessing Patient‐Reported Outcomes and Health‐Related quality of life in clinical trials on allergy: a GA2LEN taskforce position paper

To cite this article: Baiardini I, Bousquet PJ, Brzoza Z, Canonica GW, Compalati E, Fiocchi A, Fokkens W, van Wijk RG, La Grutta S, Lombardi C, Maurer M, Pinto AM, Ridolo E, Senna GE, Terreehorst I, Todo Bom A, Bousquet J, Zuberbier T, Braido F. Recommendations for assessing Patient‐Reported Outcomes and Health‐Related quality of life in clinical trials on allergy: a GA2LEN taskforce position paper. Allergy 2010; 65: 290–295.

Specific recommendations for PROs and HRQoL assessment in allergic rhinitis and/or asthma: a GA2LEN taskforce position paper

To cite this article: Braido F, Bousquet PJ, Brzoza Z, Canonica GW, Compalati E, Fiocchi A, Fokkens W, Gerth van Wijk R, La Grutta S, Lombardi C, Maurer M, Pinto AM, Ridolo E, Senna GE, Terreehorst I, Todo Bom A, Bousquet J, Zuberbier T, Baiardini I. Specific recommendations for PROs and HRQoL assessment in allergic rhinitis and/or asthma: a GA2LEN taskforce position paper. Allergy 2010; 65: 959–968.

Methods report on the development of the 2013 revision and update of the EAACI/GA2 LEN/EDF/WAO guideline for the definition, classification, diagnosis, and management of urticaria.

This methods report describes the process of guideline development in detail. It is the result of a systematic literature review using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) methodology and a structured consensus conference held on 28 and 29 November 2012, in Berlin. It is a joint initiative of the Dermatology Section of the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI), the EU-funded network of excellence, the Global Allergy and Asthma European Network (GA(2) LEN), the European Dermatology Forum (EDF), and the World Allergy Organization (WAO) with the participation of delegates of 21 national and international societies. This guideline covers the definition and classification of urticaria, taking into account the recent progress in identifying its causes, eliciting factors and pathomechanisms. In addition, it outlines evidence-based diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for the different subtypes of urticaria. This guideline was acknowledged and accepted by the European Union of Medical Specialists (UEMS) and is published in Allergy 2014; 69:868-887.

Recommendations for assessing patient-reported outcomes and health-related quality of life in patients with urticaria: a GA2LEN taskforce position paper

To cite this article: Baiardini I, Braido F, Bindslev‐Jensen C, Bousquet PJ, Brzoza Z, Canonica GW, Compalati E, Fiocchi A, Fokkens W, Gerth van Wijk R, Giménez‐Arnau A, Godse K, Grattan C, Grob JJ, La Grutta S, Kalogeromitros D, Kocatürk E, Lombardi C, Mota‐Pinto A, Ridolo E, Saini SS, Sanchez‐Borges M, Senna GE, Terreehorst I, Todo Bom A, Toubi E, Bousquet J, Zuberbier T, Maurer M. Recommendations for assessing patient‐reported outcomes and health‐related quality of life in patients with urticaria: a GA2LEN taskforce position paper. Allergy 2011; 66: 840–844.

Turkish version of the chronic urticaria quality of life questionnaire: cultural adaptation, assessment of reliability and validity.

Chronic spontaneous urticaria has a substantial impact on patients quality of life. The first disease-specific tool to assess quality of life impairment in this condition, the Chronic Urticaria Quality of Life Questionnaire (CU-Q2oL), was developed recently. The aim of this study was to adapt the original Italian version to the Turkish language and to evaluate its reliability, validity, and sensitivity to change. The Turkish version was developed by performing forward- and back-translation. It was then applied to 140 consecutive patients with chronic spontaneous urticaria, along with the Dermatology Life Quality Index and the Skindex-29. Disease activity was assessed using the Urticaria Activity Score. Sensitivity to change was measured in 101 patients, who completed the instruments twice at intervals of 4 weeks. Confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated that the six-scale structure of the original Italian version (pruritus, swelling, impact on life activities, sleep problems, limits, looks) can be retained in the Turkish instrument. Analysis regarding convergent validity showed good correlations of the Turkish CU-Q2oL with the other instruments. In addition, it was found to discriminate well between patients with different levels of urticaria activity, and to be sensitive to change. In conclusion, the Turkish version of CU-Q2oL is a reliable, valid, and sensitive instrument, which will help to characterize better the clinical impact of chronic spontaneous urticaria and treatment outcomes in Turkish patients. Its identical scale structure to that of other CU-Q2oL instruments makes it ideal for cross-cultural comparisons and for its application in future national and multinational studies.

The EAACI/GA²LEN/EDF/WAO guideline for the definition, classification, diagnosis and management of urticaria

This evidence‐ and consensus‐based guideline was developed following the methods recommended by Cochrane and the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) working group. The conference was held on 1 December 2016. It is a joint initiative of the Dermatology Section of the European Academy of Allergology and Clinical Immunology (EAACI), the EU‐founded network of excellence, the Global Allergy and Asthma European Network (GA²LEN), the European Dermatology Forum (EDF) and the World Allergy Organization (WAO) with the participation of 48 delegates of 42 national and international societies. This guideline was acknowledged and accepted by the European Union of Medical Specialists (UEMS). Urticaria is a frequent, mast cell‐driven disease, presenting with wheals, angioedema, or both. The lifetime prevalence for acute urticaria is approximately 20%. Chronic spontaneous urticaria and other chronic forms of urticaria are disabling, impair quality of life and affect performance at work and school. This guideline covers the definition and classification of urticaria, taking into account the recent progress in identifying its causes, eliciting factors and pathomechanisms. In addition, it outlines evidence‐based diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for the different subtypes of urticaria.

Lower serum concentration of dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate in patients suffering from chronic idiopathic urticaria

significant odds ratio for having asthma during last year, even after adjusting for confounders (Table 1). Although the results from several prospective studies (5, 6) suggest that obesity antedates asthma in the present study, obesity was not related to asthma occurrence. These inconsistencies recommend to consider further research in order to elucidate the mechanisms underlying the epidemiology of obesity and asthma, and the specific role of moderating variables such as the race, genetic predisposition, common inflammatory pathways, social, economical and environmental conditions, physical activity or food habits.

Serum prolactin concentration and its relationship with dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate concentration in chronic urticaria patients with positive and negative response to autologous serum skin test

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