Helpline
Relief for children with hay fever and house dust mite allergy with targeted allergy tablets
The National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has recommended two sublingual immunotherapy tablets for the treatment of moderate to severe allergic rhinitis in children whose symptoms are not controlled by symptomatic treatments be made available on the NHS.
The recommendations cover allergic rhinitis, the medical term for inflammation inside the nose caused by an allergy, with symptoms including sneezing, congestion and a runny or blocked nose.
Itulazax has been recommended for children aged 5 to 17 with allergic rhinitis caused by birch tree pollen and Acarizax has been recommended for children aged 5 to 11 with house dust mite allergic rhinitis.
The recommendations mark a significant shift in how severe hay fever and house dust mite allergy are managed in childhood, providing access to a treatment which targets the underlying cause of the allergy to deliver long-term symptom relief.
Allergic rhinitis affects between 10 and 15 per cent of children in the UK, with hay fever and house dust mite allergy among the most common triggers. For children at the severe end, the impact reaches well beyond seasonal sniffles and can disrupt life for the whole family.
Amena Warner, our Head of Clinical Services, says: “Living with allergy caused by something you cannot easily avoid such as house dust mites or pollen can have a major impact, not only from the usual symptoms of an airborne allergy such as itchy, runny eyes and nose, blocked nose, and sneezing, which can be bad enough, but also affecting sleep, school and everyday life.
We often hear from families whose children’s symptoms are so severe that they avoid the things others take for granted, like playing outside in spring/summer months to staying overnight with friends.
With this approval from the NICE eligible children can access treatment through referral to NHS clinics, which we welcome.”
Sublingual immunotherapy tablets contain a precise dose of the allergen that triggers a child’s symptoms.
Taken once a day as a tablet that dissolves under the tongue, the treatment gradually retrains the immune system, reducing symptoms over time and offering a long-term solution rather than masking symptoms.