Weiss Physician Offers New Allergy Treatments

2/12/2010 12:00:00 AM

Fewer doctor visits, no shots for patients

Weiss Memorial Hospital now offers a new allergy treatment option. Instead of regular allergy shots and needles, this self-administered alternative comes in the form of droplets, which are put under the tongue three times daily.

This summer, Janaki Emani, M.D., became the first physician in Chicago to offer sublingual (under the tongue) immunotherapy. The droplets are formulated to each patient’s specific needs, according to Dr. Emani. “If it’s a pollen allergy, the droplets contain a pollen extract. They’re purified and filtered, but it’s the substance itself that you’re placing under the tongue.”

Allergies occur when cells misinterpret certain elements such as pollen, grass or animal fur as harmful, and signal the immune system to attack. However, curative therapies such as shots and droplets applied regularly and over long periods of time can teach the body not to respond to allergens.

The biggest difference between droplets and shots is that patients who use the droplets don’t need a physician to administer them. The patient dispenses the droplets, without having to make a trip to the physician’s office.

“There are people out there who are suffering because of the inconvenience of taking a day off to go to a physician’s office or because of a fear of needles,” Dr. Emani said. “This gives them another choice for treatment.”

Because the patient receives the allergens multiple times a day, Dr. Emani said the doses are smaller than with once-weekly shots, lessening the risk of a severe reaction such as anaphylactic shock.

The practice originated in Wisconsin 40 years ago. Europeans use it too—in the form of a dissolvable tablet that patients place under the tongue to combat grass allergies. Still, some insurance companies do not recognize the droplets as an insurable form of treatment, but the cost ends up being about the same as for shots because patients don’t make weekly office co-pays.

The idea behind this form of treatment dates back to ancient medicinal practices common among Native Americans and the Chinese, who would chew on substances to which they had a systemic reaction. Some Native Americans, for example, hunted in areas heavy with poison ivy and would place small amounts of the plant in their mouths at night. Over time, their reactions to it decreased.

Aside from Dr. Emani, the nearest physicians who offer the treatment practice in Joliet and Rockford. The allergist said the reason for so few physicians offering allergy drops might have to do with the time and effort involved in learning about sublingual immunotherapy. For an appointment with Dr. Emani, please call 773-564-5355.