OIT

What is oral immunotherapy (OIT)?

OIT is a type of immunotherapy for food allergies. It involves oral ingestion of small amounts of the food allergen over a set period, slowly desensitizing your immune system to the allergen.

OIT isn’t a new treatment. However, it is only available through limited practitioners.

Allergy & Asthma Institute of Southeast Michigan has been offering OIT since 2011. For several years, the allergy and immunology practice was the only provider in the Midwest offering OIT. 

Am I a candidate for OIT?

The board-certified allergists at Allergy & Asthma Institute of Southeast Michigan determine if you’re a candidate for OIT after an initial consultation. OIT is customized and fully tailored to each patient. 

During this initial consultation, your allergist reviews your medical history and food allergy history. They also ask about your past allergy testing, including blood and skin testing results. 

Your allergist at Allergy & Asthma Institute of Southeast Michigan reviews the OIT protocol. Then, together, you decide how best to proceed. The goal of OIT is to improve quality of life and reduce the risk of food reactions. 

What Foods Can We Treat?

Any food that is a proven allergy can be treated through OIT. To date, we have treated the following through OIT:

• Milk
• Egg
• Wheat
• Soy
• Peanut
• Tree nuts (Almond, Cashew, Pistachio, Walnut, Pecan, Hazelnut, Brazil nut)
• Sesame seed, Sunflower seed
• Garbanzo bean
• Shrimp
• Corn

New protocols are also being developed frequently.

What happens during OIT?

Allergy & Asthma Institute of Southeast Michigan customizes your OIT protocol to increase success and minimize side effects. 

The first day of OIT is called rapid desensitization and takes six to eight hours. On this first day of treatment, you consume a set dose of your food allergen. You get a higher dose if there’s no reaction after 30 minutes. 

This process repeats every 30 minutes for a total of 3-4 doses. You then take this dose at home daily daily as instructed and return the following week to start your updosing.

Updosing is a weekly in-office treatment in which your allergist administers a higher dose of your allergen. You remain at the office for an hour for monitoring. If there’s no reaction, your allergist sends you home with supplies to continue this new daily dose at home. 

What happens after OIT?

When you finish your OIT protocol at Allergy & Asthma Institute of Southeast Michigan, you continue to take your daily maintenance dose. 

You return to the office once a year for an evaluation and lab studies to determine. The goal of these annual visits is to see if you can reduce your daily dose and still maintain immunological protection. 

To find out more about OIT, call Allergy & Asthma Institute of Southeast Michigan or schedule an appointment online today.

We offer fully customizable treatment for food allergies, including Oral Immunotherapy (OIT) and Sublingual Immunotherapy (SLIT) exclusively or in tandem with Xolair. Dr. Mayer has been treating food allergies for over 20 years and was one of the first providers to incorporate Xolair into successful food allergy treatments. Call us to book your appointment today.