Is Your Child Suitable for OIT?

Usually this is not an issue – if there is a clear history of allergic reactions together with a recent, clearly positive allergy test (Skin prick test and/or Specific-IgE blood test), this is usually enough to be certain of the diagnosis. The diagnosis may however be uncertain for one of the following reasons:

• The diagnosis is only based on test results (that were not high enough to be confirmatory) and there is no history of an allergic reaction to the allergen.
• The tests were taken some years ago and there has not been a reaction. More recent testing will be required to ensure the food allergy has not been outgrown.

Given the duration, cost and effort involved with OIT, it is important to confirm that the food allergy is present before progressing. If there is any uncertainty, we can arrange for the suitable allergy tests and if necessary, a supervised food challenge to confirm allergy.

Allergic reactions to foods are unpredictable in nature but if there is a history of a reaction that has required intensive care or more than 2 injections of adrenaline, then it may be that OIT is not suitable. This may also be the case if there have been significant reactions to trace exposures. Although very rare, some patients react to certain amounts of the allergen that are less than the first dose of OIT and this would make the process very difficult. Please note that the size of an allergy test is not a reliable predictor of how successful desensitisation will be. For example, the studies that underpin OIT as a treatment for peanut allergy included children with very high tests, children with a history of non-recent anaphylaxis to peanut and children who were allergic to multiple foods and other nuts.

PALFORZIA is licensed from 4–17 years of age. As long as your child is within the age group at the start of treatment, then there is not an issue. There are options to desensitise younger children by different OIT programs so please get in touch to find out more.

Other OIT programmes are available from 1 year of age up to 17 years of age.

Multi OIT if recommended by the referring clinician, is available for children up to the age of 6 years.

Asthma is common in children with food allergy and is usually not a problem as long as it is well controlled. However, if asthma is not well controlled then it can be a risk factor for severe allergic reactions and this needs to be addressed (regardless of whether you go ahead with OIT). Oral immunotherapy is associated with occasional wheezing episodes after the treatment has been taken. It is not possible to consider food desensitisation if asthma is not well controlled. Uncontrolled asthma means that there is a regular need for Ventolin more than twice a week, ongoing asthma related symptoms such as wheeze or cough or recent visits to hospital with asthma related symptoms.

It is possible that food desensitisation may aggravate symptoms of eosinophilic gastrointestinal disease such as Eosinophilic Oesophagitis (EoE) and if your child has this condition, then they would not be suitable for treatment. If your child has any problems with chronic abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting or any difficulty swallowing, then this would need careful assessment to rule out EoE before commencing desensitisation treatment.

Most other medical problems should not interfere with treatment but if they have severe eczema or another severe illness such as cancer, an immune deficiency, chronic urticaria, cardiovascular disease or active autoimmune disease, then they may not be suitable and a detailed discussion would be required before further consideration is given.

If your child is on continuous oral steroid medication or another type or immune suppressant e.g. Azathioprine, Ciclosporin or Methotrexate, then these may impact on the effectiveness of the treatment. If they are taking beta blockers, these can reduce the efficacy of emergency medicines used for severe allergic reactions from working. It is important that you let us know full details of any medication your child is taking from the outset in order that we can discuss treatment options.

Food desensitisation is not right for everybody, and it is critical that you understand the risks and benefits of treatment before making a decision. These are discussed in detail in our other patient information material but in summary, the treatment carries a real risk of allergic reactions to OIT/Palforzia. Most of these adverse reactions will be mild but may on occasion be more severe and include anaphylaxis requiring an adrenaline autoinjector (AAI) e.g. EpiPen. Anaphylaxis is more common in the early stages of treatment and may occur at home. We will supervise all ‘up-dosing’ visits to ensure this is safely tolerated. Anaphylaxis can be treated effectively by the early use of adrenaline and you will be trained in recognizing and treating allergic reactions with your AAI. Of course, these risks need to be balanced with the benefits of treatment, which is to reduce the risk of a severe reaction in an uncontrolled environment, due to an accidental exposure to the food allergen.

Food desensitisation will only work if you can make a regular commitment to treatment. This involves up-dosing visits at one of our centres for children every 2 to 3 weeks as well as daily dosing at home. Approximately 8-12 visits will be required over a 5-6 month period. Dosing will be required on an ongoing basis in order to maintain the effect of successful desensitisation but over the longer term, this can be done in other forms which will be discussed with our clinical team. If you are unable to commit to starting this potentially life-long journey, then it is better not to embark on the treatment in the first place.

Oral immunotherapy for a single allergen is priced from £6,000.

Palforzia is priced at £18,000. Details of the cost of Palforzia treatment are outlined here. Payment for the first year of treatment is required up front at the start of treatment, although payment plans are available if required. If you are not able to complete the course of treatment for any reason, there is a detailed refund policy. Unfortunately, due to the high overhead costs involved in the treatment, we are unable to offer any discounts. Upon completion of the maintenance period, your care will revert back to the referring clinician.