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Treatment of allergy


Once allergy has been diagnosed, a number of treatment options are available:

1. Environmental control
The first step in treatment is to avoid contact with the substances that cause the allergic reaction. The avoidance of such contact helps improve the results of the treatment prescribed by the specialist and reduces the clinical manifestations.

2. Drug substances
Drugs provide relief from the symptoms of rhinitis and asthma. These medicines are known as symptomatic drugs and include antihistamines, corticoids, chromones, beta-adrenergic agents, theophyllines, etc. These substances provide relief from symptoms but will not eliminate the cause of the disease.

3. Immunotherapy
Popularly known as antiallergic vaccines, these treatments consist of progressively injecting repetitive allergen doses into patients to reduce or eliminate their sensitivity to the allergen. In most cases, such treatment lasts 3-5 years.
Immunotherapy is used to treat cases of allergy caused by sensitisation to pollen, dust mites, animal epithelia, certain fungi, and bee and wasp venom. This treatment not only provides relief from symptoms but also modifies the natural course of the disease.

The World Health Organization (WHO) considers immunotherapy to be the only treatment capable of modifying the natural course of allergic diseases.