Anne Marie Kelly never had allergies growing up in Ireland. But a few years after moving to America, they hit and they seemed to get worse every year.
"I'd be up walking at night because I couldn't breathe, the congestion was really bad," Kelly said.
Anne Marie had tests done at Providence Ear, Nose & Throat Associates and they showed she was allergic to, as Anne Marie puts it, "everything, I have a huge list."
Over-the-counter and prescription medications help most people, but the relief didn't last long for Anne Marie.
She considered allergy shots. They work by gradually making the immune system less reactive to triggers such as pollen and mold.
But instead, Anne Marie opted for sublingual immunotherapy, commonly called allergy drops. They're placed under the tongue, three times a day for several years.
Nurse practitioner Susan Keeley says like the shots, the drops are tailored to each patient's type and severity of allergies. She says their good for people who don't like needles, such as children. Plus, they're convenient.
"Patients love it because they don't have to come in for an allergy shot every week. They're not tied to an appointment time, or driving here," Keeley said.
"They're just so easy to deal with. It's a small bottle, fits in your purse," Kelly said.
But despite theses pluses, most board-certified allergists DO NOT RECOMMEND the drops.
The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology points out they're "not FDA approved... and, in controlled clinical trials in the USA, have not proven effective thus far."
Allergist Dr. Eliot Dunsky of the Asthma Center agrees and says until the drops are proven to work, he and his colleagues won't give them.
"How would you feel if after 5 years taking this treatment, it turns out the FDA says it's not any more effective than water?" Dr. Dunsky asked.
He says that leads to wasted money and time that could've been spent getting a time-tested, FDA-approved treatment such as the shots.
Keeley says the drops have been proven to work overseas. Anne Marie believes they worked for her.
"I go to my son's games outside, I can go to the track. I can participate in a lot more things," Kelly said.
"Many patients do well on placebo, this doesn't mean it works," Dr. Dunsky said.
Dr. Dunsky says if the drops are proven to work then he will be happy to use them.
As for now, because they are not FDA-approved, they are not covered by insurance. Keeley says they cost about the same as the co-pays for allergy shots.
