Allergen-specific immunotherapy (SIT) is the practice of administering gradually increasing quantities of an allergen extractto an allergic subject to ameliorate the symptoms associated with the subsequent exposure to the causative allergen. The major objectives of SIT in alergy disorders are, in the short term, to reduce the allergic triggers precipitating symptoms, and, in the long term, to decrease allergy inflammation and nonspecific bronchial hyperreactivity when bronchial remodeling is not prominent. The mechanisms of SIT are complex but it was convincingly shown to act by modifying Th2 cell responses either by immune deviation (increase in Th0/Th1) or T cell anergy (decrease inTh2/Th0) or more likely both. Specific immunotherapy is the only treatment that may alterthe natural course of allergic disease.

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