Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Sep;14(9):e12394.
doi: 10.1002/clt2.12394.

The impact of COVID-19 on hay fever treatment in Japan: A retrospective cohort study based on the Japanese claims database

Yasutsugu Akasaki  1   2   3 , Takenori Inomata  1   2   3   4   5   6 , Masao Iwagami  7 , Jaemyoung Sung  1 , Ken Nagino  1   2   4   5 , Takeya Adachi  3   8   9 , Hideaki Morita  3   10   11 , Mayumi Tamari  3   12 , Keigo Kainuma  3   13 , Keiko Kan-O  3   14 , Hiroaki Ogata  3   14 , Masafumi Sakashita  3   15 , Masaki Futamura  3   16 , Yosuke Kurashima  3   17   18   19   20   21 , Saeko Nakajima  3   22 , Katsunori Masaki  3   23 , Yasushi Ogawa  3   24 , Sakura Sato  3   25 , Akihiro Miyagawa  8 , Akie Midorikawa-Inomata  4   5 , Keiichi Fujimoto  1   2 , Yuichi Okumura  1   2   5 , Kenta Fujio  1   2 , Tianxiang Huang  1   2 , Kunihiko Hirosawa  1   2 , Yuki Morooka  1   2 , Akira Murakami  1   2 , Shintaro Nakao  1
Affiliations

The impact of COVID-19 on hay fever treatment in Japan: A retrospective cohort study based on the Japanese claims database

Yasutsugu Akasaki et al. Clin Transl Allergy. 2024 Sep.

Abstract

Background: Hay fever (HF) presents with various symptoms, including allergic conjunctivitis and rhinitis, and requires cross-organ treatment. This study assessed the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on HF treatment trends.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study utilized data from the JMDC database collected between January 2018 and May 2021. Patients with HF were identified based on the relevant International Classification of Diseases 10th Revision diagnosis codes and the prescription of HF-related medications. The treatment approaches were compared during the cedar and cypress pollen allergy season (January to May in Japan) before and during the COVID-19 pandemic (2018 and 2019, and 2020 and 2021, respectively).

Results: This study included 2,598,178 patients with HF. The numbers of prescribed HF-related claims in 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 were 3,332,854, 3,534,198, 2,774,380, and 2,786,681 times, respectively. Oral second-generation antihistamine prescriptions decreased by >10% from 2019 to 2020, with a <10% change in the subsequent year. Anti-allergic eye drop prescriptions also decreased by >10% from 2019 to 2020 but increased by >10% from 2020 to 2021. Compared with 2018, 2019, and 2020, the number of claims in the rhinitis symptoms dominant group was significantly decreased in 2021 (p < 0.001, all). In contrast, the number of claims in the eye symptoms dominant group and the rhinitis and eye symptoms dominant group increased in 2021 compared with that in 2018, 2019, and 2020 (p < 0.001, all).

Conclusion: Changes in HF treatment and related outcomes could be attributed to lifestyle modifications resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Measures, such as limiting outdoor activities and adopting mask-wearing practices may have influenced HF symptoms, preventive behaviors, and the overall approach to treating HF.

Keywords: COVID‐19; SARS‐CoV‐2; allergic conjunctivitis; allergic rhinitis; hay fever.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

H.M. received a grant from GlaxoSmithKline Japan. M.T. received lecture fees from Sanofi, Astra Zeneca UCB Japan, and KYORIN Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. K.M. received a grant from Nippon Boehringer Ingelheim Co., Ltd., TAIHO Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., and Ping An‐Shionogi Co., Ltd. K.N., Y. Okumura, and A.M.I. received personal fees from InnoJin, Inc., outside the submitted work. T.I. reports non‐financial support from Lion Corporation and Sony Network Communications Inc., grants from Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc., Yuimedi, Inc., ROHTO Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Kobayashi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Kandenko Co., Ltd., and Fukoku Co., Ltd., personal fees from Santen Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., InnoJin, Inc., and Ono Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., outside the submitted work. S. Nakao reports grants from Kowa Company. Ltd., Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corporation, Alcon Japan, Ltd., Santen Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Machida Endoscope Co., Ltd., Wakamoto Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Bayer Yakuhin, Ltd., Senju Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Nippon Boehringer Ingelheim Co., Ltd., Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Hoya Corporation, and Novartis Pharma K.K., outside the submitted work. The remaining authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Changes during the COVID‐19 pandemic for each item per year. (A) Monthly hay fever‐related claims between January 2018 and May 2021. (B) Total hay fever‐related claims during the hay fever season between 2018 and 2021 (*p = 0.023 [t‐test]). COVID‐19, coronavirus disease 2019.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Changes in the number of prescriptions and treatment patterns for allergic conjunctivitis and allergic rhinitis during the hay fever season each year. (A) Changes in the number of prescriptions for each medication class (2019 vs. 2018, 2020 vs. 2019, and 2021 vs. 2020). (B) Mean change in the number of prescriptions for each medication (2020 vs. 2018 and 2019, 2021 vs. 2018 and 2019). Each percentage change is color‐coded based on its value (increase of >10%: red, within 10%: yellow, decrease of >10%: blue). (C) The ratio of each treatment pattern group's claims to the total number of claims by year for allergic conjunctivitis: Group I: anti‐allergic eye drops; Group II: anti‐allergic eye drops + steroid eye drops or NSAID eye drops; Group III: anti‐allergic eye drops + anti‐allergic oral or patch medicine; Group IV: anti‐allergic eye drops + anti‐allergic oral or patch medicines + steroid eye drops or NSAID eye drops; Group V: not prescribed anti‐allergic eye drops. (D) The ratio of each treatment pattern group's claims to the total number of claims by year for allergic rhinitis: Group I: mild; Group II: moderate; Group III: severe; Group IV: other combinations; Group V: not prescribed allergic rhinitis‐related medications. ED, eye drops; NSAIDs, non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs; EO, eye ointments; OM, oral medicines; PG, prostaglandin D2 receptor/thromboxane A2 receptor antagonist; ND, nasal drops; PM, patch medicines.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Zhu N, Zhang D, Wang W, et al. A novel coronavirus from patients with pneumonia in China, 2019. N Engl J Med. 2020;382(8):727‐733. 10.1056/nejmoa2001017 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Shikuma J, Nagai Y, Sakurai M, et al. Impact of gender differences on lifestyle and glycemic control in Japanese patients with diabetes during COVID‐19 lockdowns. Prim Care Diabetes. 2022;16(3):350‐354. 10.1016/j.pcd.2022.03.004 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Information about the COVID‐19 and the MHLW's response (2020). https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/newpage_09747.html
    1. Executive order on promoting COVID‐⁠19 safety in domestic and international travel. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing‐room/presidential‐actions/2021/01/21...
    1. Makhni S, Umscheid CA, Soo J, et al. Hand hygiene compliance rate during the COVID‐19 pandemic. JAMA Intern Med. 2021;181:1006‐1008. 10.1001/jamainternmed.2021.1429 - DOI - PMC - PubMed