Allergy Asthma Immunol Res.  2016 Nov;8(6):541-544. 10.4168/aair.2016.8.6.541.

The Basophil Activation Test Is Safe and Useful for Confirming Drug-Induced Anaphylaxis

• Kim SY
• Kim JH
• Jang YS
• Choi JH
• Park S
• Hwang YI
• Jang SH
• Jung KS

• KMID: 2349995
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4168/aair.2016.8.6.541

Abstract

The basophil activation test (BAT) has been suggested as a complementary method for diagnosing drug allergies. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical utility of this test in patients with drug-induced anaphylaxis. In total, 19 patients, all of whom had a history of moderate to severe anaphylaxis, were enrolled. None of the causative drugs had available in vitro tests or reliable skin tests; these drugs included, among others, first and second-generation cephalosporins, H2 blockers, and muscle relaxants. The BAT yielded positive results in 57.9% of the cases, which was similar those results of skin prick and intradermal tests (42.1% and 57.9%, respectively). When basophils were double labelled with CD63 and CD203c, both of which are basophil activation markers, the positive rate was increased from 57.9% to 73.7%. Therefore, the results of this study confirm that the BAT is a quick, reliable, and safe diagnostic tool for patients with drug-induced anaphylaxis.

Keyword

Anaphylaxis; basophil; drug allergy

MeSH Terms

Anaphylaxis*
Basophils*
Cephalosporins
Drug Hypersensitivity
Humans
In Vitro Techniques
Intradermal Tests
Methods
Skin
Skin Tests
Cephalosporins

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