Oral immunotherapy and potential treatment.

The standardized therapeutic approach for food allergy is based on avoidance of allergens in foods. Oral immunotherapy (OIT) is a significant focus of food allergy research and appears to be effective in inducing desensitization. However, most patients receiving OIT have mild to moderate symptoms during the therapy, and it has not been clearly established whether OIT is effective in inducing permanent tolerance. Recently, novel therapeutic approaches for food allergy, or sublingual immunotherapy and epicutaneous immunotherapy using an anti-IgE monoclonal antibody (omalizumab), have been examined in some studies. These studies showed that the frequency of adverse reactions is lower than with OIT and that patients can increase their food tolerance. Other novel approaches, including the use of omalizumab in combination with OIT, may be useful in food allergy treatment. There is some evidence that a combination of OIT with omalizumab increases threshold doses of food without causing symptoms. OIT offers a new approach for treating food allergy, although further study is needed to demonstrate long-term safety and benefits in larger numbers of patients.