Vitamin D supplementation improves the therapeutic effect of mometasone on allergic rhinitis

This study aimed to investigate the efficacy and safety of vitamin D supplementation in the treatment of allergic rhinitis (AR) using mometasone. A total of 140 patients with moderate and severe AR treated at our hospital between January 2017 and August 2020 were recruited as subjects for this study. The patients were randomly divided into control and experimental groups, with 70 patients in each group. Mometasone nasal spray was used in both groups, and vitamin D was administered to the experimental group for four weeks. The total nasal symptom scores (TNSS) and rhinoconjunctivitis quality of life questionnaire (RQLQ) were used to assess the efficacy of treatment. T lymphocyte subsets (CD3+, CD4+ and CD8+) and serum anti-inflammatory and proinflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-10 (IL-10), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), and interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) were analyzed. The incidence of adverse reactions was recorded. Serum vitamin D levels were lower in patients with AR. After 4 weeks of treatment, total TNSS scores, T lymphocyte subsets (CD3+, CD4+), CD4+/CD8+ ratio, TNF-alpha, and total RQLQ scores were significantly reduced compared to the initial testing (P<0.05) in the two groups; CD8+, IFN-gamma, and IL-10 levels as well as serum vitamin D were significantly increased compared to the initial test (P<0.05). The improvement in these parameters in the experimental group was significantly greater than that in the control group (P<0.05), except for sneezing and eye symptoms in the TNSS and RQLQ scores. It was concluded that vitamin D supplementation improves the therapeutic effect of mometasone nasal spray on AR and is thus recommended as an adjuvant therapy for moderate and severe AR.