Safe & Effective Allergy Shots

Allergen immunotherapy, known more commonly as allergy shots, can decrease your sensitivity to common allergens such as pet dander, insect venoms, and pollen.

While every patient's experience is different, studies have shown a significant reduction in symptoms and the need for medication use. In fact, most people see some degree of allergy relief after only 5-6 months of treatment, and most venom Immunotherapy patients are protected from insect stings within just 2-4 months.

Make an appointment with our board-certified allergists and immunologists to see if immunotherapy is right for you or your child by calling University of Utah Health Allergy & Immunology at 801-581-2955.

Transcript Below

Allergen immunotherapy, or “allergy shots,” is a safe and effective treatment for people with allergies. This treatment can be used by both children and adults, and is typically recommended when allergy symptoms are moderate to severe and can’t be controlled by medications or changes to the patient’s environment.

University of Utah Health Allergy & Immunology offers immunotherapy for:
• Allergens that contribute to allergic asthma, allergic rhinitis, allergic conjunctivitis and eczema, 
• Environmental allergies that include pollen, animals, mold, dust mites, cockroaches, and
• Insect stings from bees, yellow jackets, hornets, wasps, and fire ants.

Allergy shots work like a vaccine: tiny amounts of an allergen (a substance you are allergic to) are injected into the skin, changing the way your immune system reacts to that allergen, which then builds up your tolerance. We administer allergy shots in two phases: the build-up phase and the maintenance phase.

During the build-up phase, you will start receiving injections once a week. In some cases, we may give the shots more frequently. We will then start to gradually increase the amount of the allergen in your injections so your body can build up a tolerance. The duration of this phase lasts for three to six months; however, the time frame largely depends on the injection frequency.

The maintenance phase begins when you have reached the maintenance dose prescribed by your physician, taking into account your specific allergy situation. Once your maintenance dose is reached, we will increase the time between your allergy injections to once every 4-6 weeks.

While allergen immunotherapy is very safe, it is possible to have an allergic reaction to the injections during treatment. Some possible reactions are:


• itching or swelling at the injection site
• hay fever-like symptoms
• hives
• flushing of the skin
• light-headedness
• asthma
• rarely, anaphylaxis or a severe allergic reaction

Other more serious reactions may occur in patients with worsening asthma or asthma that's not controlled well. If you have asthma, talk with your doctor or allergist before receiving injections.

Allergy shots have been shown to decrease the severity of allergic reactions to common allergens such as pollen, mold, animal dander, and dust mites. For most people, the initial 6 to 12 months of allergy shots have decreased their sensitivity to airborne allergens, and as patients continue to get immunotherapy injections, symptoms continue to improve and they need less medication. Some studies have also shown that allergen immunotherapy may play a role in preventing asthma from developing in patients with allergic rhinitis.  A typical course of allergen immunotherapy lasts from 3-5 years; after that, your symptom improvement should be permanent.

If you are interested in learning more about allergen immunotherapy or in scheduling an appointment, contact University of Utah Health Allergy & Immunology at 801-581-2955 or https://healthcare.utah.edu/allergy-i....