Summary The effect of a potent antihistamine, cetirizine, was studied on allergic patients and normal subjects by means of an in‐vivo‘skin window’ technique. All subjects showed significant inhibition of skin‐test responses to grass pollen, compound 48/80, histamine and methacholine, after administration of a single dose (10 mg) of cetirizine. Compared to placebo, cetirizine significantly decreased the eosinophils attraction at skin sites challenged with grass pollen and compound 48/80. In allergic patients no change in eosinophil migration pattern was noted with histamine and methacholine skin‐tested sites. In normal subjects, compound 48/80 and histamine did not induce eosinophil accumulation and cetirizine did not modify cellular patterns as compared to placebo. These results suggest that cetirizine acts on eosinophil migration by inhibiting the release of mast cell mediators or inhibiting the eosinophilotactic mediators themselves.

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