Allergies? Here's how to avoid allergy shots.

So many of us with outdoor allergies dread going to the allergist for shots, or, have simply given up going altogether. I would venture to bet that your allergist has never mentioned a new therapy that you can do at home and eliminate shots altogether. The therapy, sublingual immunotherapy, is actually not new. It has been available in Europe for over a decade but is just starting to gain traction in the US. Unfortunately, very few allergists use it because it threatens their business model. The data on sublingual immunotherapy is compelling and vast for outdoor allergies. Here is just the latest study from the June 299 issue of Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology:

Background
Seasonal allergic rhinoconjunctivitis affects millions of persons. The efficacy of allergen sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) was demonstrated in previous short-term studies.

Objectives
We sought to evaluate the sustained efficacy of 2 dosing regimens of a pre- and coseasonal treatment with 300 IR (index of reactivity) 5-grass-pollen SLIT tablets (Oralair) compared with placebo assessed by using the average adjusted symptom score (AAdSS) at season 3 in adults with grass pollen–induced rhinoconjunctivitis.

Methods
Six hundred thirty-three patients were treated for either 2 or 4 months before and then during the grass pollen season with active or placebo treatment for 3 consecutive seasons. The primary outcome was the AAdSS, a symptom score adjusted for rescue medication use, after 3 consecutive treatment seasons. Secondary outcomes were symptoms and rescue medication score, quality-of-life, and safety assessments.

Results
The mean AAdSS was reduced by 36.0% and 34.5% at season 3 in the 2- and 4-month pre- and coseasonal active treatment groups, respectively, compared with that in the placebo group (P < .0001 for both). Reductions were observed in total symptom scores and ISSs and the medication score, with a marked improvement in quality of life for both active groups compared with the placebo group at season 3. Most treatment-emergent adverse events were local reactions expected with SLIT, decreasing in number and intensity in each treatment season.

Conclusions
Sustained efficacy of 2- and 4-month pre- and coseasonal treatment with the 300 IR tablet over 3 pollen seasons was demonstrated, with reduction in symptoms and rescue medication use. The treatment was well tolerated. Adverse events decreased in number and intensity over the 3 seasons.

If you have tree, grass, weed/ragweed pollen and mold spores allergies, sublinigual immunotherapy can be extremely helpful therapeutically as well as a time-saving measure. Ask your allergist about them and if he/she does not support them, find an allergist who will.

We would welcome your response below in answering the question, "has your allergist ever suggested sublingual immunotherapy to you?"