Adherence and systemic reaction rates to allergy immunotherapy among veterans

BACKGROUND: Although allergen immunotherapy (AIT) is effective and safe, nonadherence is common. Limited data exist regarding adherence to AIT, factors that affect adherence, and systemic reactions associated with AIT among veteran populations. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate adherence to AIT and the prevalence of reactions secondary to AIT among patients at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Memphis, Tennessee. METHODS: A retrospective chart review was performed of veterans who received AIT at a single Veterans Affairs facility. Age, race, sex, the total number of shots, travel distance, a diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and the number of severe adverse reactions were compared between the veterans who were adherent and veterans who were nonadherent. RESULTS: The overall adherence rate was 60.9%. Factors associated with adherence were a chart diagnosis of PTSD (29.3% [adherent group] versus 13.6% [nonadherent group]; p = 0.03) and home residence being a further distance from the facility (21.9 miles / 35.2 kilometers [adherent group] versus 18.0 miles / 28.9 kilometers [nonadherent group]; p = 0.03). Patients who were adherent received an average of more total injections compared with patients who were nonadherent. Age, sex, race, and history of systemic reactions during AIT displayed no statistically significant differences between the groups. There were a total of 20 systemic reactions, and the systemic reaction rate was 0.2% per AIT encounter and 0.1% per injection. CONCLUSION: AIT adherence and systemic reaction rates among veterans at our facility was comparable with similar studies. Adherence was associated with a chart diagnosis of PTSD and home residence that was further away from the clinic.