Peanut allergy immunotherapy: OIT, EPIT and SLIT compared
What it found
Three peanut allergy treatments have been tested in people: oral, skin patch and under-the-tongue immunotherapy.
Oral immunotherapy produced strong desensitization but side effects remained a concern, the skin patch had a reassuring safety profile with a more modest protective effect, and under-the-tongue immunotherapy has lagged in development.
What they found
Studies in people
Oral immunotherapy
Peanut oral immunotherapy has been shown to induce strong desensitization in people. However, side effects and safety of the treatment have remained a concern.
Skin patch immunotherapy
Peanut epicutaneous immunotherapy has shown a reassuring safety profile in people. Its protective effect was more modest.
Under-the-tongue immunotherapy
Peanut sublingual immunotherapy has remained behind in development. Recent studies have suggested a balance of desensitization, safety and convenience.
Other findings
No perfect treatment
There are no perfect treatments for peanut allergy. Oral, epicutaneous and sublingual immunotherapy each has its own pros and cons.
What the authors conclude
“There are no perfect treatments for peanut allergy and OIT, EPIT, and SLIT each has its unique pros and cons.”
Also in their conclusions
- They say there are no perfect treatments for peanut allergy and that OIT, EPIT and SLIT each has its unique pros and cons.
- They advise that shared decision-making between patients and providers will be essential to achieve optimal care for patients with peanut allergy.
How it was done
Peanut allergy has continued to increase in prevalence, and treatments for people who already have the allergy have been lacking. The broad psychosocial and financial effects of the allergy have also begun to be discussed.
The authors reviewed pivotal clinical trials of oral, epicutaneous and sublingual immunotherapy for peanut allergy from the past 10 years.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- This is a review of trials, not a new trial, so it cannot show how these treatments compare head to head.
- It cannot show which treatment is best for any one person.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- University of North Carolina School of Medicine, USA; CEO UNC Healthcare University of North Carolina School of Medicine, USA
The paper
- Title
- Immunotherapy approaches for peanut allergy
- Type
- ReviewThe authors read earlier studies and describe what they found. It isn’t a new study.
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Kim EH, Patel C, Burks AW (2020). Immunotherapy approaches for peanut allergy. Expert review of clinical immunology. doi:10.1080/1744666X.2019.1708192PubMed 31928251DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error