If you live with allergies in North Texas, chances are you’ve heard about or read about allergy drops or sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT). With the Dallas–Fort Worth Metroplex ranking as #4 among the country’s Allergy Capitals, according to a 2024 report from the Allergy and Asthma Foundation of America (AAFA), allergy remedies are top of mind for many local residents. SLIT is only one of the innovative treatments bringing great relief to many North Texans. Let’s look at the advantages of choosing different forms of allergy immunotherapy.
What Is Allergy Immunotherapy?
Allergy immunotherapy (or desensitization) includes preventive treatments that increasingly expose patients to their specific allergens over an extended period of time, until negative reactions decrease in intensity and occurrence. Allergen immunotherapy is distributed in various formats, including the previously mentioned allergy drops (SLIT), oral immunotherapy (OIT), and allergy shots, known as SCIT (subcutaneous immunotherapy).
A course of treatment will start in the office so the patient can be carefully monitored. The main thing is to remain consistent, from the initial office appointments to regular maintenance at home. This is especially important for pediatric allergy patients. Essentially, consistency is key to positive outcomes.
Top 5 Benefits of Allergy Immunotherapy
Now that you know what allergen immunotherapy is, let’s look at the top reasons it is a beneficial treatment for allergy sufferers. We trust that the following reasons will help you understand these fascinating treatments and how they can provide relief.
1. Allergy Immunotherapy Is Highly Effective
Allergy drops are a newer treatment for environmental and food allergies, yet their efficacy is quite high. SLIT is seen as one of the best ways to treat common food allergies. Additionally, different forms of allergen immunotherapy are effective in combating various other allergens.
2. Thorough Testing to Understand Allergies
Before beginning allergen immunotherapy, your allergist conducts thorough testing to find out what allergens trigger responses that can include skin and blood tests. This establishes a good baseline to track improvement, and gives insight into if you have multiple allergies.
3. Improved Quality of Life
For some patients, living with allergies can limit activities. This is especially the case for people with food allergies. Food allergy drops and OIT can put simple pleasures (like eating out at restaurants without fear) back into the lives of patients.
4. Different Modes of Administration
Allergy shots (SCIT) remain an effective way to combat seasonal and environmental allergies. But if you don’t care for injections, and you or your child are a candidate for the other therapies, today you have multiple options for your allergy treatments.
5. Allergen Immunotherapies Are Trusted Treatments
Highly-experienced board-certified allergists consider allergy immunotherapy to be the best treatment option for patients seeking long-term relief. As allergies continue to be studied, and as more robust treatments and cures are sought, allergy immunotherapy is currently the most innovative way to help patients live better lives.
Visit an Experienced North Texas Allergist for Immunotherapy
At TexasAllergyMD, we’ve made it our mission to help allergy and asthma patients in McKinney/Prosper and Southlake feel their absolute best. We get to the root of issues and offer various allergy immunotherapy treatments to restore you to a better quality of life. Start your testing and treatment journey by calling us at (469) 375-1525, or request an appointment now.
