Total serum IgE levels among adults patients with intermittent and persistent allergic asthmas

Background: Allergic asthma is a chronic inflammatory airway disease mediated by immunologic mechanisms. Based on the degree of severity, allergic asthma is divided into intermittent asthma and persistent asthma. IgE plays an important role in mediating allergic response in asthma; however, there are no studies on total IgE levels in adult asthmatic patients in Indonesia based on disease severity. This study aimed to determine the difference of serum total IgE levels between adult patients with intermittent and persistent allergic asthmas. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of allergic asthma patients treated at the Allergy-Immunology Division Polyclinic, Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital, Jakarta from January to August 2017. The data obtained included the demographic information of the patients, the level of severity of asthma, and the total serum IgE level. The severity level was the independent variable, while the total serum IgE level was the dependent variable. Median difference was analyzed using a Mann-Whitney U test. Results: There were 60 patients included in this study. Based on the degree of severity, 11 patients (18.3%) had intermittent asthma and 49 patients (81.67%) had persistent asthma. The mean (standard deviation) total serum IgE level in all subjects was 42.35 (32.7) IU/ml. Median total serum IgE level was significantly higher in persistent asthma than in intermittent asthma (37 vs. 16 IU/ml; p=0.004). Conclusion: Serum total IgE levels in persistent allergic asthma patients were significantly higher than in intermittent allergic asthma patients. This finding is consistent with a more severe degree of airway inflammation.