Modern methods of allergen-specific immunotherapy in allergic rhinitis treatment

Abstract

The article presents the modern methods of allergen-specific immunotherapy in patients with allergic rhinitis. Allergen-specific immunotherapy - a method of treating allergic diseases, involves reducing the organism’s sensitivity to the allergen effects by repeated administration of allergen extract, starting with the minimum dose. Given the allergic rhinitis high prevalence, as well as its tendency to increase, strong interest in effective methods of its treatment is fully justified. Over the last 20 years, it has become clear that asthma and rhinitis are two types of manifestations of a single pathological process in the airways. It has been proven that allergic disease clinical features may change over time. In addition, patients with allergy are prone to multivalent sensitization. Currently none of the drugs used to relieve allergic rhinitis symptoms can not change the organism’s response to an allergen. Allergen-specific immunotherapy can reduce allergic disease symptoms severity, reduces the need in drugs use, decreases the chance of additional sensitization to other allergens, prevents the asthma development. This therapy has become one of the most widely used effective methods of atopic diseases treatment: seasonal and perennial rhinoconjunctivitis, atopic asthma. Allergen-specific immunotherapy can lead to a change in the immunological response to the relevant allergens in early stages, acting through regulatory cells. Current studies are aimed, on the one hand, at reducing the therapeutic allergovaccines ability to cause allergic reactions, on the other - to maintain or enhance their immunogenic properties. Achieving this goal is possible by changing the route of administration and delivery of therapeutic allergens (non-injection methods of allergen-specific immunotherapy), and using a variety of allergens modification techniques.