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The Future of Sublingual Immunotherapy in the United States

  • Rhinitis (JJ Oppenheimer and J Corren, Section Editors)
  • Published:
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Abstract

Sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) is a safe and effective treatment for allergic rhinitis (AR) and allergic rhinoconjunctivitis (ARC). The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the USA has approved three SLIT tablets for the treatment of AR and ARC in relation to pollen. Specifically, Grastek® and Oralair® are two formulations approved to treat patients suffering with AR/ARC to grass pollen, and Ragwitek™ is a formulation approved to treat patients suffering with AR/ARC to ragweed pollen. Although these approvals provide support for physicians to prescribe SLIT, barriers to prescribing SLIT still remain such as FDA approval for additional formulations, a standard dose and dosing schedule, and cost/insurance coverage. In order to further support the use of SLIT, research is currently being conducted to expand the indication for SLIT to other common comorbidities to AR/ARC. For example, allergic asthma, food allergies, and atopic dermatitis are other diseases which are being explored. The future of SLIT in the USA is unknown; however, education will be necessary for both providers and patients.

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Papers of particular interest, published recently, have been highlighted as: • Of importance •• Of major importance

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Conflict of Interest

Nicole Pleskovic and Ashton Bartholow declare that they have no competing interests. Deborah A. Gentile reports that she was a speaker for Merck & Co. and Greer. David P. Skoner reports grants from Greer Laboratories, Novartis, Merck & Co., Genentech, GlaxoSmithKline, Sunovion, and Teva, and was a speaker or consultant for Merck & Co., Sunovion, Mylan, Teva, GlaxoSmithKline, Genentech, Novartis, and Sunovion.

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This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, Department of Medicine, Allegheny General Hospital, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Nicole Pleskovic, Ashton Bartholow, Deborah A. Gentile & David P. Skoner

  2. Temple University School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Deborah A. Gentile & David P. Skoner

  3. Department of Medicine, Allegheny General Hospital, 420 East North Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15212, USA

    David P. Skoner

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  1. Nicole Pleskovic
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  2. Ashton Bartholow
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  3. Deborah A. Gentile
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  4. David P. Skoner
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Correspondence to David P. Skoner.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Rhinitis

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Pleskovic, N., Bartholow, A., Gentile, D.A. et al. The Future of Sublingual Immunotherapy in the United States. Curr Allergy Asthma Rep 15, 44 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11882-015-0545-x

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