Fighting words for the next phase in allergy prevention

A direct quote from a study on preschool children in this month's Expert Review of Clinical Immunology has put American Allergists who are not providing SLIT (Sublingual Immunotherapy) on notice:

"It has been demonstrated that SLIT (Sublingual Immunotherapy) is the only therapy that can modify the natural history of atopic diseases, causing a permanent desensitization towards the responsible allergen and modifying the immune system of the atopic patients, even if until now there is no evidence on a possible prevention role of the same therapy. Its efficacy and safety has been widely demonstrated both in adults and in children, even if the studies on preschool children are still limited. Nevertheless, the demonstration of its safety in the reported studies on preschool children is confirmatory to the already ongoing use in clinical practice, particularly if we think that its efficacy is higher when started at a younger age. It is important to remember, however, that in very young children, a detailed diagnosis of IgE-mediated allergy made by a specialist is mandatory to justify the risk:benefit ratio. Further studies on its efficacy in preschool age children should be encouraged."