Review
Volume 21, Issue 1, January 2016, Pages 26–37
Open Access
Highlights
- •
- Allergy is increasing in prevalence and pharmacotherapy alone cannot control the disease.
- •
- Allergy immunotherapy induces immunological tolerance and changes the course of disease.
- •
- Allergy immunotherapy has long term effect extending beyond termination of treatment.
- •
- Allergy immunotherapy prevents asthma in children with rhino-conjunctivitis.
- •
- Allergy immunotherapy improves quality-of-life in patients suffering from allergy.
Allergic respiratory disease represents a significant and expanding health problem worldwide. Allergic symptoms, such as asthma and hay fever, cause sleep impairment and reduce school and work performance. The cost to society is substantial. Allergen avoidance and pharmacotherapy cannot control the disease. Only allergy immunotherapy has disease-modifying potential and should be included in optimal treatment strategies. Allergy immunotherapy was first administered as subcutaneous injections and has been practiced for the past 100 years or so. Recently, tablet-based sublingual allergy immunotherapy (SLIT) was introduced with comprehensive clinical documentation. SLIT tablets represent a more patient-friendly concept because they can be used for self-treatment at home.
No comments:
Post a Comment