Allergen Immunotherapy for the Prevention of Allergic Asthma

Purpose of review:: Children with allergic rhinitis (AR) have a high risk of developing asthma. An effect beyond end of allergen immunotherapy (AIT) has been demonstrated, and moreover a preventive effect on the development of asthma in children with AR is suggested. The aim of this review is to discuss the evidence for the asthma preventive capacity of AIT. Recent findings:: According to the recently published systematic review and clinical practice AIT guideline from The European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI), there is sufficient evidence to recommend a 3-year course of AIT for children and adolescents with moderate to severe AR and grass/birch pollen allergy, for the prevention of asthma for up to 2 years post-AIT. Further, a recent high-quality trial demonstrated a preventive effect of a 3-year course of AIT with a sublingual grass tablet on asthma symptoms and medication 2 years post-AIT in children with AR and grass pollen allergy. Summary:: AIT has a disease-modifying and asthma preventive effect, which may influence the indication for AIT in the future. © 2018, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.