Omalizumab: a future innovation for treatment of severe ocular allergy?

Conjunctival and corneal manifestations of atopic keratoconjunctivitis (AKC) are chronic, disabling and may be blinding. In common with other allergic diseases, such as asthma and atopic dermatitis, AKC is characterised by an allergen-induced immune response mediated through expression of IgE. The humanised monoclonal IgE antibody Xolair (omalizumab) complexes with free circulating IgE, thereby preventing binding of IgE to FcepsilonRI receptors on immune cells. Omalizumab effectively alleviates the signs and symptoms of asthma. Given the pivotal role of IgE in the allergic cascade, it is hypothesised that omalizumab has potential as an entirely new therapeutic approach to AKC.