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Haytox

Authoring team

"Haytox" has been the subject of a British Medical Journal (BMJ) "Fact Check" article (1):

  • spray treatment has gained popularity among people with hay fever in Australia and the UK over the past two years
  • administered in clinic to the nasal passage as an aerosol through a disposable intranasal atomiser device typically used to administer emergency drugs
  • Haytox relies on the neurotoxin botulinum toxin-A (BT-A), commonly used in cosmetic procedures (Botox being the best-known commercial form of the compound)
  • Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), a government regulatory authority notes:
    • is not approved and has not been evaluated for the purpose of treating hay fever
    • has not evaluated Haytox and therefore warns consumers that it cannot guarantee the quality, safety, or efficacy of this product. Consumers should also be aware of the risk of serious side effects when accessing medicines for an unapproved use
  • the "Fact Check" notes "...Direct injections offer better control in terms of dosage but may be painful. And the dosing for topical application remains challenging because of unpredictable local absorption in the nasal mucosa..."

Notes:

  • there have been studies using BT-A injections in the management of allergic rhinitis (2)
    • in a study investigating the use of either intranasal injection of Botulinum toxin type A (BTX-A) and multiple postganglionic parasympathectomy of pterygopalatine ganglion (PPG) in uncontrolled allergic rhinitis
    • concluded that both BTX-A and MSP, in patients with uncontrolled AR, may be a long-lasting therapeutic option for the treatment of nasal hypersecretions, but not as effective as for sneezing and nasal congestion

Reference:

  1. Nadarajah S. Haytox: what is the evidence for a Botox spray for hay fever? BMJ 2024; 385 :q623 doi:10.1136/bmj.q623
  2. Ismail M, Nasr M, Abdelhak B, Awad OG, Hamead K. Comparing The Effects of Botulinum toxin-A and multiple surgical parasympathectomy on treatment of allergic rhinitis. Am J Otolaryngol. 2023 Jul-Aug;44(4):103893

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