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Emotion with tears decreases allergic responses to latex in atopic eczema patients with latex allergy

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychores.2005.10.012Get rights and content

Abstract

Objective

Allergic responses are enhanced by stress, whereas they are reduced by laughter in atopic eczema patients. Emotion with tears decreases plasma IL-6 levels in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Thus, the effect of emotion with tears on allergic responses in patients with atopic eczema was studied.

Methods

Sixty patients with atopic eczema having latex allergy viewed both the weather information video and the heart-warming movie, Kramer vs. Kramer. Just before and immediately after viewing each video, allergic responses to latex were measured.

Results

Viewing the weather information video did not cause emotion with tears in any patients, and it failed to modulate allergic responses. In contrast, viewing Kramer vs. Kramer caused emotion with tears in 44 of 60 patients, and it reduced allergic skin wheal responses to latex and latex-specific IgE production in them.

Conclusion

Emotion with tears reduced allergic responses, and it may be useful in the treatment of allergic diseases.

Introduction

Allergic responses are enhanced by stress, whereas they are reduced by laughter in atopic eczema patients [1], [2]. On the other hand, patients with breast cancer who habitually suppress anger have higher serum IgA levels [3]. Pleasant feeling induced by watching a comical video enhances free radical-scavenging capacity in the saliva of normal subjects [4]. Deep emotion with tears decreases plasma IL-6 levels and CD4/CD8 ratios of peripheral blood in patients with rheumatoid arthritis [5]. These findings prompted me to study the effect of emotion with tears on allergic responses in patients with atopic eczema (AE).

Section snippets

Subjects

After obtaining informed written consent, 60 mild AE patients [mean SCORAD index 9 (95% CI 7–11)] (30 women and 30 men; mean, 27 years; range, 21–30 years) with latex allergy were studied [6]. Atopic eczema patients were treated with application of a mixture of pinetar (Yoshida Pharmaceutical, Tokyo, Japan) and zinc oxide ointment, but without oral medication [7]. Atopic eczema patients with latex allergy were recruited by advertisement at our hospital, and all of AE patients were allergic to

Results and discussion

As shown in Table 1, after viewing the weather information video, none of the AE patients was moved to tears. Thus, all of 60 AE patients were classified as “no tears” after viewing the weather information video. Viewing the weather information video had no effect on skin wheal responses induced by latex or histamine, or on latex-induced Ig and cytokine production. In contrast, after viewing Kramer vs. Kramer, 44 AE patients were moved to tears, whereas 16 AE patients were not. To confirm

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