A REVIEW Sublingual Immunotherapy: An Innovative Alternative for Allergies

Sublingual Immunotherapy is a form of immunotherapy that involves placing the allergen extract under the tongue. An allergist gives patient small doses of an allergen under the tongue to boost the tolerance to the substance and reduce its symptoms. At present, the only forms of SLIT approved by the FDA are tablets for ragweed, northern pasture grasses like timothy, and dust mites. The safety and efficacy of allergy drops is yet being established by the FDA, and they are only used without label in the United States. The possible advantages of sublingual treatment are those of no use of injections, comparatively few regular doctor visits, possibility of home dosing after the first treatment, also a lower risk of serious reactions. Parents of young children often prefer sublingual immunotherapy as their child does not have to have regular injections. The main disadvantage of this form of treatment is its cost as more allergen needs to be swallowed than injected, this results in the cost per allergen being more expensive than that of injected treatments. Keywords: Sublingual immunotherapy, allergies, SLIT, SCIT, AIT, allergen