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Interested in learning more about environmental allergies? Watch our interview with Dr. Kroker

Did you know...

that 54.3 percent of the U.S. population tests positive for one or more allergen (AAAAI)? This has not always been the case. The rate of allergies has climbed substantially in the past forty years and the results are heavily weighing on cases of allergic asthma. According to the Center for Disease Control's study, the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 56.3 percent of asthma cases are caused by having one more allergy. Asthma affected 6.8 million in 1980, 13.7 million in 1994 and now 22 million (ACAAI).

 

Some of the most gratifying sublingual immunotherapy studies are those which have shown a decrease in asthma development in children. In one study (Novembre) the effect was a nearly four-fold decrease in the development of asthma in patients who were given sublingual immunotherapy versus control subjects. In another study (Di Rienzo) patients with asthma who improved on SLIT were still improved five years after therapy ended. In the Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology September 2008, Marogna et al. published a study comparing SLIT vs medications only. New allergic sensitizations occurred in 34.8% of controls, and in only 3.1% of SLIT patients. After three years, 45% of the control group had developed intermittent or persistent asthma. 13% of SLIT patients developed asthma. These studies show the benefits of treating the underlying allergy and encourage the use of sublingual immunotherapy in more patients with allergies and asthma.

 

Environmental Allergies

maple leaf and skyIn the U.S., 20 percent of adults and nearly 40 percent of children are affected by environmental allergies. Symptoms can range from itchy, watery eyes, a stuffy, runny nose and sneezing, to wheezing and coughing. Americans commonly refer to these symptoms as "hayfever."

According to the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, there are five main allergy offenders which include trees, grasses, weeds, molds and dust mites. These pesky culprits account for approximately 1.5 million school days missed annually and 28 million days of lost productivity for adults. Globally, there has been a 100 percent increase in the prevalance of "hayfever" or allergic rhinitis in each of the last three decades in developed countries. 1

Many people with mild to severe environmental allergies look to sublingual immunotherapy when avoiding their allergies and treating with medication such as anti-histamines are not working. Allergies impact quality of life, and treating the underlying allergy improves symptoms and reduces the likelihood of new sensitivities developing. In the long run, immunotherapy has benefits you can't achieve from medications which just treat symptoms. Immunotherapy, whether allergy shots or allergy drops, is the only treatment that modifies allergic disease.

At Allergy Associates of La Crosse, we will help you identify your environmental allergies through one or more of our testing options. Once we have a complete inventory of your allergies, we will prescribe one or more types of allergy drops in addition to symptomatic medications, however your need for these medications will decrease over time. Some patients respond to sublingual immunotherapy treatment slowly and some respond quickly. As you might expect, it depends on the patient, the allergies' severity and how much allergen the patient is exposed to. The average treatment for environmental allergies lasts three to five years.

Sources:                                                                                                                                                                         1. American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology