{"id":2177,"date":"2021-02-11T18:09:06","date_gmt":"2021-02-11T23:09:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/?p=2177"},"modified":"2021-02-11T18:09:09","modified_gmt":"2021-02-11T23:09:09","slug":"allergy-shots-versus-sublingual-immunotherapy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/allergy-shots-versus-sublingual-immunotherapy\/","title":{"rendered":"Allergy Shots Versus Sublingual Immunotherapy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Immunotherapy is a blanket term for long-term allergy treatment that reduces symptoms over time by decreasing your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/nose\/allergy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">sensitivity to allergens<\/a>. There are traditionally two forms of immunotherapy: allergy shots and sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT), also called allergy drops. We compare the two below so you can make the best treatment decision for you or your child.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How Does Immunotherapy Work?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/pollen-allergies-shots-immunotherapy-1280x853.jpeg\" alt=\"Dandelion seeds blowing in the wind.\" class=\"wp-image-2179\" width=\"340\" height=\"226\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/pollen-allergies-shots-immunotherapy-1280x853.jpeg 1280w, https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/pollen-allergies-shots-immunotherapy-768x512.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/pollen-allergies-shots-immunotherapy-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/pollen-allergies-shots-immunotherapy.jpeg 1880w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 340px) 100vw, 340px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Whether you get allergy shots or drops, the principles are the same. Immunotherapy works like a vaccine in that small amounts of an allergen are administered in gradually increasing doses. This helps your body build a tolerance against the allergen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Allergy Shots<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Allergy shots are administered in two phases:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><strong>Build-up phase. <\/strong>During this phase, increasingly larger amounts of allergens are administered by a physician once or twice per week. This period ranges three to six months, though the duration depends on how well your body tolerates the injections.<\/li><li><strong>Maintenance phase. <\/strong>Once you reach an effective dose, shots are administered less frequently, usually every two to four weeks. This phase lasts three to five years. The frequency and duration depend on how well your body tolerates the dosage as well as the severity of your symptoms.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s possible that you\u2019ll experience milder symptoms starting in the build-up phase, but it could take as long as 12 months to notice a difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Allergy Drops<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Allergy drops are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hopkinsmedicine.org\/news\/media\/releases\/hate_allergy_shots_oral_allergy_drops_are_a_pretty_good_option_for_some_allergy_and_allergic_asthma_sufferers_study_review_shows\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">an effective alternative to allergy shots<\/a> and available in both liquid and tablet form; however, only tablet forms have currently been approved by the FDA. Liquid drops are still being reviewed for safety and efficacy but are available in some doctors\u2019 offices as off-label drugs. So far, the FDA has approved tablets for treating ragweed, dust mites, Timothy grass and several other grass species.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In most cases, allergy drops are taken three to seven days per week for about three years. For seasonal allergies, drops only need to be taken before and during springtime, but for year-round allergies like dust mites they are taken continuously throughout the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Symptoms should begin to improve within a few months, but significant benefit takes at least a year. By the fourth year, symptoms should be gone or minimal. If you\u2019re ready to treat your allergy symptoms so you can enjoy spending time at <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/atlmemorialpark.org\/\" target=\"_blank\">Atlanta Memorial Park<\/a>, schedule an appointment <a href=\"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/contact\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">with one of our expert allergists<\/a> today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Learn More About Allergies<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/understanding-sublingual-immunotherapy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Understanding Sublingual Immunotherapy<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/are-allergies-making-you-snore\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Are Allergies Making You Snore?<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/learning-about-loss-of-smell-during-the-pandemic\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Learning About Loss of Smell During the Pandemic<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Immunotherapy is a blanket term for long-term allergy treatment that reduces symptoms over time by decreasing your sensitivity to allergens. There are traditionally two forms of immunotherapy: allergy shots and sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT), also called allergy drops. We compare the two below so you can make the best treatment decision for you or your child&#8230;.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2179,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"There are traditionally two forms of immunotherapy: allergy shots and sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT), also called allergy drops.","_seopress_robots_index":"","schema":"","fname":"","lname":"","position":"","credentials":"","placeID":"","no_match":false,"name":"","company":"","review":"","address":"","city":"","state":"","zip":"","lat":"","lng":"","phone1":"","phone2":"","fax":"","mon1":"","mon2":"","tue1":"","tue2":"","wed1":"","wed2":"","thu1":"","thu2":"","fri1":"","fri2":"","sat1":"","sat2":"","sun1":"","sun2":"","hours-note":"","locid":"","rating":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2177"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2177"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2177\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2179"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2177"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2177"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.entofga.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2177"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}