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Effects of montelukast on human nasal mucosa

  • Rhinology
  • Published:
European Archives of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Objective

Montelukast is a selective and orally active leukotriene D4 receptor antagonist often used in treating asthma and allergic rhinitis. Montelukast nasal spray was developed to avoid systemic adverse effects of the drug in vitro. However, the effects of montelukast on human nasal mucosa are not yet fully explored and potential nasal vascular side effects of the drug merit further exploration. First, the effects of montelukast on vasocontractile responses generated by smooth muscles in the vascular structures of human nasal mucosa were investigated directly in vitro.

Methods

This study examined the effects of montelukast on human nasal mucosa in terms of mucosa resting tension, vasoconstriction caused by 10− 6 M methoxamine as a sympathetic mimetic, and electrically induced vasoconstrictions.

Results

The results indicated that addition of methoxamine to the incubation medium caused the nasal mucosa to vasocontract in a dose-dependent manner. Addition of montelukast at doses of 10− 5 M or above elicited a significant vasodilation response to 10− 6 M methoxamine-induced vasoconstriction. Montelukast could not inhibit electrical field stimulation-induced spike vasoconstriction. Moreover, increase in concentration of montelukast had minimal effect on basal tension of nasal mucosa.

Conclusions

The study indicated significant vasodilation on human nasal mucosa under high concentrations of montelukast with a probable α-adrenoceptor antagonism. Hence, the nasal activity of α-adrenergic agonist nasal spray for nasal obstruction may be reduced in those using concomitant (oral or local spray) montelukast.

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Acknowledgements

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, 325, Cheng-Kung Road Section 2, Taipei, 114, Taiwan, ROC

    Hsing-Won Wang, Jih-Chin Lee, Yueng-Hsiang Chu, Yuan-Yung Lin & Li-Hsiang Cheng

  2. Graduate Institute of Clinical Medicine and Department of Otolaryngology, Taipei Medical University-Shuang Ho Hospital, New Taipei City, Taiwan, ROC

    Hsing-Won Wang

  3. Department of Psychiatry, Far Eastern Memorial Hospital, New Taipei City, Taiwan, ROC

    Pei-Chuan Wu

Authors
  1. Hsing-Won Wang
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  2. Jih-Chin Lee
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  4. Yueng-Hsiang Chu
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Correspondence to Li-Hsiang Cheng.

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Authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

The study was approved by the institutional review board of the Tri-Service General Hospital. All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study, and each patient had given a written informed consent about the use of the samples for medical research.

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Wang, HW., Lee, JC., Wu, PC. et al. Effects of montelukast on human nasal mucosa. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol 276, 761–765 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00405-018-05274-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00405-018-05274-8

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