Allergy Drops (SLIT)
For the past 20 years Dr Kushnir is a Leader in the field of Allergy-Immunology and one of the best providers of effective and safe treatment - Sublingual Allergy Drops. These drops are made from commercial extracts of the allergens specifically for you and can be easily administered at home.
Remote Services Available!
Allergy can be devastating! Missed school, severe headaches, congested nose and asthma - these are just few problems allergy can cause.
Financial burden of having allergy and asthma in US is another considerable problem. Over-the-counter medications are often ineffective, costly and have significant side effects. Lost wages from missed work, lost job due to "brain cloud" and inability to concentrate, visits to the ER and hospital with asthma exacerbation... this story is familiar to many of our patients.
That is why we offer SLIT - a solution returning people to normal healthy life! Being busy professionals with kids we also offer many services in your house (allergy testing, house evaluation for potential allergens etc.) and online. We can ship the SLIT directly to your house and teach you how to use it online.
What is SLIT drops for allergy?
Sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) is a biological treatment for environmental allergies. It is the awesome way to get rid of symptoms without medication. It also is long-lasting treatment working for years after the treatment course.
Allergen immunotherapy, whether it is SLIT or Shots, works by re-educating immune system to stop attacking normal environmental proteins (allergens). SLIT is very safe and effective, which makes it a perfect allergy treatment for children (no shots!), pregnant women, and for people who could not tolerate allergy shots due to asthma and severe reactions. SLIT is a great time saving option for anyone with busy schedule who does not have time for once weekly injections with 30 min mandatory waiting in the office.
SLIT is placed under the tongue as a liquid drop form daily. This way it trains immune system to become “tolerant” to the proteins (cat, dog, cochroach etc.) which caused the allergy in the first place. Symptoms start going away almost immediately after the person advances to the top dose (usually 1-3 months of treatment). Complete resolution of the allergy might take anywhere from 1 year to 5 years. SLIT is commonly referred to as “allergy drops.”
Are Allergy Shots same treatment as SLIT?
An old-fashion therapy for allergy is Allergy shots, or Subcutaneous Immunotherapy (SCIT), is also a common and effective option for people. We provide full range of Immunotherapy options in our clinic. Allergy shots can help prevent further allergies and reduce inflammation that is caused by allergies. Unfortunately, allergy shots have a rare but severe side effect – anaphylaxis (a systemic allergic reaction that may cause death if not timely treated with epinephrine). That is why Allergy shots require office visits and a patient needs to stay for at least 30 min each time.
Shots need to maintain the concentration in blood, so they need to be administered once or twice weekly, for quite some time (about a year), then once every 2-4 weeks for 3-5 years. People must be consistent with treatment dosing and will require “catch up” doses if there is a lapse in treatment. These requirements are harsh in our modern life when each minute is valued.
At Regenerative Immunology Clinic do patients prefer SLIT or shots?
Most of our patients (children and adults) cannot afford losing so much time out of their already packed routine, so they opt out of shots and prefer SLIT. A convenience of home use is remarkable and save lots of money.
SLIT is based on the same formula as shots treatment, only the administration is different. It has the same benefits as shots, and recently SLIT was found to be superior to shots. (References) SLIT allows for dosing flexibility and more individual approach. This treatment is allowing for more independence and flexibility in that you can administer them yourself at home. SLIT also does not need to be refrigerated, so it will not mess up your travel plans. Just take one bottle in your travel bag and continue the treatment without interruptions. SLIT, just like shots takes 3-5 years to achieve complete tolerance.
A huge advantage is the fast onset of action - symptoms disappear or significantly improve within 1-3 month (with shots you will need to wait at least 6 month to see a result).
What's in a SLIT bottle?
SLIT has same content and formula as any allergy immunotherapy (allergy shots). It has two components - antigen serum and glycerin. Antigen serum is a commercial extract made from allergens (cat fur, dog fur, pollens, molds, dust mites etc.) by the immunotherapy companies. We buy only the finest serums that are standardized and FDA approved.
According to your skin test you are allergic to some of these proteins - doctor will mix certain amount of serums from these antigens to combine with glycerin for stability. There are many serums we keep in stock as common allergens, but we also can order custom serums of uncommon allergies, such as mosquito or guinea pig allergy.
Does Dr. Kushnir make the drops?
There is a certain degree of the medical art in the preparation of the individual prescriptions - the dose of a specific allergen can be high or low (even homeopathic), also doctor can elect to include only some of the allergens to increase efficacy and reduce possible reactions. Dr Kushnir is an expert in this treatment with more than 20 years of experience and has created proprietary advanced treatment protocols.
The dose and content of the SLIT can be easily adjusted to achieve the highest treatment potential.
The SLIT mix is stable for up to a year at room temperature, and designed for an easy administration at home. When you receive your first prescription you need to come into the office to be trained how to use it, and to receive the first dose. A physician or medical staff will observe you for 15 min for any reactions. You will get the schedule of doses and explained what the color-coding is. After that – you take off. So, you don’t need to cancel your vacations and adjust work/school hours to get treatment!
Which of my allergies can be treated with SLIT?
SLIT is known for outstanding results for any environmental allergens. Some people use it to treat food allergies, but there is no good research yet that would prove that such method works. It is interesting, that people who are on SLIT for environment report having much less problems with food allergy and food intolerances. It makes sense, as there is only one immune system that works in the body, so if SLIT improves immune function it will work for all allergic problems.
SLIT can treat all of the following:
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Outdoor allergies: pollens of grasses, trees and weeds.
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Pet allergies: cats, dogs, rabbit, guinea pig, rat, mouse, hamster, birds
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Indoor allergies: Molds exposure and allergy, cockroach and dust mites.
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Allergic asthma
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Allergic nose problems (rhinitis or hay fever, sinusitis)
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Allergic eye problems (conjunctivitis, blepharitis)
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Allergic skin rashes (eczema, atopic dermatitis)
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Migraines caused by allergies
Such condition as Oral Allergy Syndrome, when your mouth and throat itches with eating fruits and nuts, is caused by cross-reaction with pollens. It can be successfully treated with SLIT!
What are the most common side effects with SLIT?
When using SLIT there are no side effects at all, and it does not interact with other treatments of conditions. However, mild allergic reactions may happen at high doses of allergen. These are eliminated by mouth washing or eating a piece of a cracker. Most commonly people report a mild local itching in the mouth. Additional side effects, although extremely rare, may include:
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Mouth, tongue and lip itching
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Eye itching and redness
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Sneezing and nasal itching
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Hives
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Stomach ache
In children some other rare side effects may include swelling of the cheek and enlarged neck lymph glands. These side effects are similar to allergy symptoms and can be easily managed by adjusting your dose in the drops.
SLIT can be safely used during infertility treatment, pregnancy and in very young children, Also, you do not have to avoid your pets or give them away when starting SLIT.
How often do I need to see a doctor while on SLIT?
Once you have decided to treat your allergies with SLIT, there will be an initial appointment to pick up your individualized drops. At the initial visit, we will demonstrate how to use the drops and have you demonstrate its proper usage. There will be a follow-up visit 3-6 months later to check in and assess how the SLIT treatment is going. You may return once every 3-6 months from after the dose is established and if the treatment is going well. SLIT can be picked up in the office, and there is an option to have it mailed directly to you with overnight service.
How long is the treatment with SLIT
SLIT is used daily for about 3 years in kids and at least for 5 years in adults. It is the same for shots. There is a wide range of completion time, as this is dependent on the individual and proper use of treatment. The goal of SLIT treatment is free you of your bothersome allergy symptoms and allow your immune system to normalize function as your natural defense system. We are here to support you on your journey to an allergy-free life every step of the way. We can address any questions you many have before, during and after treatment. In addition, we can retest you for specific allergens over time to see the improvement of your treatment. Often people are pleasantly surprised to see their “less reactive” immune system and allergy symptom relief.
What are commercial tablets and SLIT?
The FDA has also approved sublingual tablets for ragweed, grass pollen and dust mites. While manufacturers claim the same efficacy, Dr Kushnir has not seen significant effect and is not prescribing them. The dose of the tablets cannot be adjusted individually.
There are many resellers of the SLIT online - we cannot comment on them as some of them might be legitimate physicians offering online services (just like Dr Kushnir), while some offer insanely low prices which just cannot be true with the regulated prices of the stock serums. What that means - you will have regular antigen diluted 10-100 times, which indeed is a placebo. We cannot evaluate other resellers and cannot compare their treatments to our SLIT.
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References
Use of Sublingual Immunotherapy for Aeroallergens in Children with Asthma J Clin Med. 2020 Oct; 9(10): 3381. Published online 2020 Oct 21. doi: 10.3390/jcm9103381 PMCID: PMC7589061 PMID: 33096894 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7589061/
Efficacy and safety of sublingual versus subcutaneous immunotherapy in children with allergic rhinitis: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Jiumei Yang 1, Sihong Lei 1,* PMCID: PMC10757840 PMID: 38162647 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10757840/
Blanco, Carlos et al. “Sublingual allergen immunotherapy for respiratory allergy: a systematic review.” Drugs in context vol. 7 212552. 5 Nov. 2018, doi:10.7573/dic.212552 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6220898/
Aissa, S et al. “Critical appraisal of the clinical utility of sublingual immunotherapy in allergy.” Contemporary clinical trials communications vol. 4 1-8. 18 Jun. 2016, doi:10.1016/j.conctc.2016.06.002 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5935903/
James, Christine, and David I Bernstein. “Allergen immunotherapy: an updated review of safety.” Current opinion in allergy and clinical immunology vol. 17,1 (2017): 55-59. doi:10.1097/ACI.0000000000000335 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5644500/
Sublingual immunotherapy with Dermatophagoides farinae drops for pediatric atopic dermatitis. Huang C, Tang J.Int J Dermatol. 2022 Feb;61(2):246-251. doi: 10.1111/ijd.15977. Epub 2021 Nov 18.PMID: 34792188 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ijd.15977