New and highly effective way to treat chronic allergy problem

New Allergy Treatment-Sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT)

This is my second blog on allergy problem. In first blog saw New Guidelines to get through Allergy Season and some best Allergy Relief Product. In this blog you will know more about this new treatment which is called Sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT).

This is a highly effective, easy-to-administer option for chronic allergy and asthma sufferers.

What research has been done recently in the area of seasonal allergies? Specifically, have there been any significant findings or breakthroughs in allergy shots, e.g. are there new medications that "last longer" between shots? Recent findings include the discovery that allergen therapy delivered under the tongue, called sublingual immunotherapy, is effective in treating seasonal allergies, and substantially safer than the standard two- to three-year course of allergy shots, called subcutaneous immunotherapy. Another recent finding is that children who do not have asthma, but have seasonal allergies and receive subcutaneous immunotherapy, are far less likely to develop asthma over the ensuing years.

Allergen immunotherapy for the treatment of allergic respiratory diseases has traditionally been administered by subcutaneous injections. Subcutaneous immunotherapy (SCIT) has proven efficacy in allergic rhinitis and asthma, but it requires regular injections at a clinician's office (typically over a period of three to five years) and carries the risk of potentially serious systemic allergic reactions in response to the treatment itself.

Why OOral immunotherapy (OIT)

This offers several specific advantages over injection immunotherapy. OIT is more easily administered, avoids cumbersome injections regimens, and carries a much lower risk of anaphylaxis compared with SCIT. This article will discuss the mechanisms of action, advantages, and limitations of OIT for allergic rhinitis. The most common methods of administering immunotherapy via an oral route: sublingual aqueous allergen extracts (SLIT-aqueous), sublingual allergen tablets (SLIT-tablet), and enteric or microencapsulated allergen will also be reviewed. SCIT is discussed separately. (See "Subcutaneous immunotherapy for allergic disease: Indications and efficacy" and "Subcutaneous immunotherapy for allergic disease: Therapeutic mechanisms".)

 What Are Allergy Drops?

Sublingual immunotherapy is simply a less invasive way of administering the very same antigen formulas used in allergy shots (subcutaneous immunotherapy) for nearly a century. "Allergy shots work well but let's face it, no one enjoys getting a shot every week, especially not children. And the weekly schedule commitment can be a challenge for parents and busy professionals," says Dr. Rotskoff.

How Does Sublingual Immunotherapy Work?

After comprehensive allergy skin testing, Dr. Rotskoff prepares a custom antigen blend for each patient. The allergy solution is then administered daily, in the comfort of the patient's home, in the form of drops placed under the tongue. No more shots, no more weekly trips to the doctor.

Just like with allergy shots, SLIT works by exposing the patient to gradually increasing quantities of their allergens to build tolerance and desensitize the immune system. Dosage increases during the escalation phase and then stabilizes for a maintenance phase of about three to five years.

Why Allergy Drops?

While relatively new in the U.S., allergy drops are widely used in Europe and are proven to achieve lasting results in the majority of patients. Further, they can significantly reduce the development of childhood asthma up to 7 years after treatment.

Beyond the obvious appeal of pain-free allergy treatment, allergy drops help patients in a number of ways:

•Convenient, at-home application

•Significantly more child-friendly and safe for young children

•More cost-effective maintenance regimen

•Reduces need for oral allergy medication

•Successfully treats broader range of allergies and prevents new allergies

•Achieves long-term alteration of the body's immune response to allergens

•Improves asthma control and can prevent asthma from developing

•Proven effective in reducing childhood asthma, chronic ear infections, and eczema

"Allergy drops significantly improve quality of life for my patients," adds Dr. Rotskoff, "their allergies are controlled just as effectively as with allergy shots, in a much more convenient and comfortable way." Dr. Rotskoff checks in with his SLIT patients every six months to monitor progress, more frequently during the escalation phase.

Availability

 

 Sublingual tablet immunotherapy (SLIT-tablet) has been approved by the European regulatory authorities and is in use throughout the European Union (EU). Some SLIT-tablets are available in Canada. In the United States, OIT has not been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration at the time of this writing. However, there is increasing “off-label” use of aqueous allergen extracts for sublingual immunotherapy.

MECHANISMS OF ACTION

 The gut is the largest mucosal organ of the body and is exposed to numerous foreign proteins on a constant basis. The normal response of the gut immune system to nonpathogenic proteins is tolerance, a fact which forms the basis for the concept of oral immunization.

The gut immune system is comprised of various physical barriers, secretory IgA, the gut associated lymphoid tissue (GALT), and lymphoid organs (mesenteric lymph nodes, spleen, and liver). Within the GALT, two areas of importance for antigen processing are the tonsils and adjacent ring of lymphoid tissue in the posterior pharynx, and the Peyer's patches of the duodenum, jejunum, and small intestine. The GALT is essential for normal tolerance to most foreign proteins, as well as in the immunologic response to oral immunotherapy (OIT). The role of the GALT in the pathogenesis of food allergy is reviewed elsewhere. (See "Pathogenesis of food allergy".)

Allergens used in OIT are usually intended for absorption either in the mouth or within the small intestine, as the conditions of the gastric environment (pH and other factors) destroy many allergenic proteins. Whether the immunologic response to allergens absorbed through the oral mucosa is different from that to allergens absorbed through the intestine is an area of ongoing investigation.

(SOURCE clarityallergycenter.com)