Functional eicosanoid test and typing [FET] in acetylsalicylic acid intolerant patients with urticaria

One of the common side effects of acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) is the induction of pseudoallergic reactions that range from urticarial wheals to anaphylactic shock. At present there is no reliable detection method available for the diagnosis of ASA-hypersensitivity and its relation to clinical symptoms. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the functional eicosanoid typing (FET) score taking into account several parameters of the equilibrium between prostaglandins (PG) and peptido-leukotriens (pLT). A total eicosanoid pattern score (TEP) ranging from 0.0 to 3.0, was defined that exhibited significant differences (p 0.001) between ASA-intolerant patients and healthy subjects. In addition to the differentiation of both groups at a TEP cut-off value of 1.0, the increasing TEP values correlated with an increasing severity of clinical symptoms in ASA-intolerant patients. We conclude that the FET has the potential for the safe and reliable detection of ASA-intolerance and, probably, other eicosanoid-related pseudoallergic reactions.