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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2016 Aug 2.
Published in final edited form as: Pediatr Clin North Am. 2015 Sep 7;62(6):1531–1549. doi: 10.1016/j.pcl.2015.07.015

Table 3.

Immunotherapy summary: pro/con

Method Advantages Disadvantages
OIT

  • Can give larger maintenance doses (g) than SLIT/EPIT (mg)

  • More effective than SLIT

  • Greatest side effects

  • Not tolerated in 15%–20% of subjects

  • Potential for iatrogenic EoE

  • Requires long-term adherence
SLIT

  • Fewer side effects than OIT

  • Not tolerated in 5% of subjects

  • Only able to reach small maintenance doses (mg)

  • Not as effective as OIT

  • Requires long-term adherence
EPIT

  • May have fewer side effects than SLIT and OIT

  • May be safer in broader clinical settings

  • Only able to reach small maintenance doses (mg)

  • May only be as effective as SLIT, likely less than OIT

  • May not be safe in patients with atopic dermatitis
Allergen-nonspecific therapies (eg, omalizumab, Chinese herbal formula)

  • Potentially desensitize to all food allergens

  • May have the fewest side effects

  • May have the poorest efficacy, potentially limiting use to adjunct therapy

  • Omalizumab is not currently approved by the US FDA for food allergy and is cost-prohibitive