THE SKIN AS A TARGET ORGAN FOR THE INVESTIGATION OF ANTIALLERGIC DRUGS - COMPARISON BETWEEN CETIRIZINE AND TERFENADINE

Two double-blind clinical pharmacology studies were performed in atopics in order to compare the inhibitory effects of cetirizine (CTZ) 2 HCl and terfenadine (TER) on histamine and antigen-induced skin reactions. In the first study, the subjects took single intakes of CTZ 10 mg and TER 60 mg. In the second study, they took CTZ 10 mg once a day and TER 60 mg b.i.d. for 3 weeks. CTZ was more effective than TER in inhibiting histamine skin reactivity. CTZ and TER were equally effective in inhibiting antigen-induced reactions. There was no tachyphylaxis, either for CTZ or for TER.