Immunotherapy is often referred to as “desensitization therapy” – it is one of the most important means of treating allergic rhinitis. “Immunotherapy” can control allergy symptoms, patients do not need to use drugs for treatment, and the quality of life can be greatly improved; it can also prevent the occurrence of new allergen allergy; it can prevent allergic rhinitis from developing into asthma. Therefore, immunotherapy has become an increasingly important tool in the treatment of allergic rhinitis.
The reliability of “immunotherapy” was not established overnight, but has been gradually developed and accepted by the medical community.
In 1998, the World Health Organization proposed indications for immunotherapy, i.e., for patients who are ineffective or intolerant to medication and have poor results.
In 2001, the concept of “immunotherapy” went one step further, and the “Allergic Rhinitis Guidelines (ARIA Guidelines)” recommended that immunotherapy should preferably be used in the early stages of the disease to reduce the occurrence of side effects and to prevent further development of severe disease (e.g. asthma).
In 2006, the concept of immunotherapy changed again and the medical community began to consider immunotherapy as an allopathic treatment that alters the course of the disease and should be used as early as possible to avoid further irreversible lesions. For example, if a patient has already developed asthma, but irreversible changes in certain organs have occurred due to irregular and untimely treatment, it is too late to choose immunotherapy.
Doctor’s note: It should be noted that “immunotherapy” also has certain limitations and is not suitable for many cases, so we hope that patients should first consult a professional doctor to seriously discuss the feasibility of its use in clinical practice.