ASIT therapy: advantages and adverse effects. own results and literature data

Introduction: Allergy is an important medical, social and economic problem nowadays, as it causes disability and patients' quality of life decreases. According to the update data all the existing therapeutic options haven't been used in huge majority of patients. Allergen-specific immunotherapy (ASIT) underuse in particular. One of the reasons for the low frequency of this treatment method using is the fear of systemic and local allergic. The aim of the study was to find out the incidence and severity of adverse reactions in patients receiving subcutaneous and sublingual ASIT.

Materials and methods: In conducted research we compared peculiarities of adverse reactions using sublingual and subcutaneous ASIT methods. Criteria for inclusion in the research were age from 18 to 50 years, diagnosed intermittent or persistent BA. The investigation involved 51 patients with combined basic drug therapy and ASIT, which was performed with injected allergens for 38 patients and sublingual allergens - for 13 individuals.

Results: Local reactions were recorded in five patients (13.16%), who received injected ASIT. In four patients (10.52%), dry rales were observed for a short period after injection of the allergen. Local side effect was observed in one patient (7.69%) during sublingual ASIT.

Conclusions: Adverse reactions, that occur during ASIT, do not pose a threat to patients' lives. However, the therapeutic effect after the year of treatment was significantly better than in patients who used medications only. Modern drugs are safe and, if all the rules are followed, the risk of adverse effects is very low.