Hay fever is the most common allergy in Switzerland. Immunotherapy, which is often referred to as desensitisation, can help with hay fever and other allergies. It provides significant relief for symptoms, and can prevent relapses.
Hay fever is the most common allergy in our part of the world, and according to the aha! Allergy Centre Switzerland, it affects around one in five people in this country. Desensitisation or hyposensitisation addresses the root cause of the allergy, and can alleviate symptoms in the long term. In ideal cases, it completely eliminates the allergy.
Why autumn is the best time
In the autumn, the pollen count decreases. The body has minimal exposure to allergens at this time of year, and can gradually become accustomed to the small amount of allergens that it comes into contact with during desensitisation.
«"When it comes to pollen allergies, autumn and winter are the perfect time to slowly and gently accustom the body to the allergens using immunotherapy."»
Desensitisation can also prevent an allergy from triggering asthma.
Allergies the therapy is suitable for
- Pollen allergy: ideal to start in autumn or winter
- Dust mite and mould allergy: can start at any time of year
- Pet allergy: particularly suitable when the animal is not living in your immediate vicinity; breeds and allergy types can always vary
- Insect venom allergy (wasp, bee): ideal to start when the insects are no longer active, i.e. including autumn and winter
Immunotherapy is not yet available for food allergies, or at least the intestines cannot be desensitised using this method of treatment.
How treatment works
First, the allergist administers skin and blood tests to create a profile of the substances that the individual is allergic to. This profile can be used to put together a personalised plan of treatment with allergens, although hyposensitisation is most likely to succeed if the patient does not react to too many different allergens at the same time. The specialist can provide more detailed information once the allergy testing has been completed.
The doses are administered every one or two weeks by injection into the upper arm under medical supervision or, alternatively, taken as drops or tablets every day under the tongue. Immunotherapy generally takes about three to five years. The therapy is administered in short intervals at first, which are then gradually extended. The dosage is increased each time in order to slowly get the body used to the allergen. To optimise the chances of success, the immunotherapy should be administered without interruption.
Hay fever or pet allergy?
Do you only experience the symptoms of the allergy when you are outside, or also when you are inside? Are they perhaps strongest when there is an animal nearby? There are lots of different potential triggers for allergies, including pollen, dust mites and animal dander (please also refer to the health tip on pet allergies). You can take the "sniffle test" (in German, French and Italian) yourself on the website of the aha! Swiss Allergy Centre. This will make it easier for the allergist to identify the root cause of the problem. Simply bring the test results with you to the consultation and discuss them with your physician.You can find out more about desensitisation and the various allergy tests on the website of the aha! Swiss Allergy Centre.
For your health: santé24 and SWICA Benecura
Do you have a health question? Our physicians and healthcare professionals at santé24 are available 24/7 on +41 44 404 86 86 for SWICA customers. In addition to telephone health advice, patients whose conditions are appropriate for telemedicine can receive medical services such as diagnostics, treatment, and even e-prescriptions for prescription medications.
Do you feel ill? The SWICA Benecura medical app makes it easy to carry out a digital SymptomCheck. You will receive a personal recommendation about what to do next. Send your information in encrypted form to the santé24 online practice for your telephone consultation to significantly shorten the assessment.
