Keeping patients safe and preventing allergic reactions is only possible with a comprehensive food allergy treatment. To deliver more reliable care, leading Atlanta allergists increasingly develop personalized plans for adult and pediatric patients. Supported by patient-specific strategies, people can better manage their allergies and reduce the impact on their daily lives. Here are some of the key ways that personalized treatment helps food allergy management.
Managing a Food Allergy With Personalized Treatment
Food allergies affect millions of adults and children, but the impact of an allergy can vary considerably. Whether you have mild symptoms or potentially life-threatening reactions, you can benefit from personalized treatment.
Precision Food Allergy Testing
Skin prick and blood tests allow allergists to precisely identify the food (or foods) that trigger allergy symptoms. In diagnosing a food allergy, the results of testing, an examination of the patient’s lifestyle, previous symptoms and medical history are used. Additionally, assessing the wheal size after a skin prick test (or IgE levels from a blood) test can help indicate a person’s sensitivity to the allergen.
Customized Desensitization Treatments
A food allergy doctor treats the various types of allergies individually, assessing the health risks and impact on a patient. For those with milk, egg, peanut, tree nut, sesame and wheat allergies, oral immunotherapy (OIT) is a valuable treatment option. Patients will start treatment with varying tolerance levels, so the speed at which a person proceeds to higher doses absolutely requires personalization.
Assess Risk Factors and Reactions
Someone with an extensive family history of allergies is likely to be at a higher risk of experiencing allergic reactions. Also, having a history of anaphylaxis means that an allergist may adjust treatment to reduce the threat of a severe reaction. When creating a personalized food allergy management program your allergist will consider these factors and more.
Adjust Treatments Based on Patient Responses
Food allergy management is an ongoing process that provides the beneficial component of individualized treatments, frequent monitoring, plus making adjustments where required. If a person experiences side effects after increasing an OIT dose, or a child has outgrown their allergy, it may be necessary to change treatments or to perform new food allergy tests.
Recommend Lifestyle Changes
Food allergy management should also consider lifestyle choices. By reading food labels and avoiding certain allergens, families can reduce the chance of a reaction. Food substitution can also be integrated into a plan. For example, your allergist could suggest changing your child’s dairy choices from cow’s milk to alternative plant-based options.
Considering Additional Conditions
Patients with asthma, eczema, chronic sinusitis and other conditions could benefit from an integrated treatment approach. Rather than relying on a general food allergy management plan, patients receive personalized allergy treatments that consider how allergy symptoms and medications will impact other conditions.
Contact Us for Personalized Food Allergy Treatment in Atlanta
Chacko Allergy, Asthma and Sinus Center provides food allergy testing and treatment services for patients in Atlanta and surrounding cities. Our allergist develops personalized plans for the successful long-term management of food allergies. Call (678) 668-4688 or request an appointment.
