美国国家公共电台 NPR Seasonal Sniffles? Immunotherapy Tablets Catch On As An Alternative To Allergy Shots

 

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

If allergies¹ have you sneezing your way through spring, you are not alone. Allergy² shots are one treatment option, but many allergists are now prescribing some of their patients tablets that can be taken at home. NPR's Allison Aubrey reports.

ALLISON AUBREY, BYLINE³: When I was a kid, I remember weekly treks⁴ to the doctor to get my allergy shot, and thanks to my mom, who made all those trips, the strategy seemed to work. As an adult, I don't have symptoms, and that's because the shots can actually shift or alter your immune system. They're a form of immunotherapy, and the newer tablets, which were approved about five years ago, work in the very same way. Allergist Mike Tankersley who practices in Memphis, Tenn., says that tablets are easy to take.

MIKE TANKERSLEY: It's a little wafer tablet that you put under your tongue. It dissolves in about 10 seconds.

AUBREY: Now, unlike allergy shots, which can be formulated⁵ to treat a whole bunch of allergies with one shot, the tablets target just one allergy. So Tankersley says they're most effective for people who have one or two main allergies that bother them. There are four FDA-approved tablets on the market to treat grass pollens⁷, dust mites⁸ and ragweed.

TANKERSLEY: I've had several patients in my practice who had been very happy with having a product that they can take it home. So those patients who, historically, we didn't really have anything to offer them, is now we've got something to offer those patients.

AUBREY: According to a new survey by the American College of Allergy, Asthma⁹ and Immunology, 73 percent of allergists now prescribed tablets to some of their patients.

TANKERSLEY: There's been a significant change in practice in the United States.

AUBREY: Now, so far there is not a tablet approved for tree pollen⁶ in the U.S., and that's what's really driving all these early spring allergies. But there are tablets for grass pollens, which can start to rise about this time of year and really bother people through the summer. Harold Nelson is an allergist at National Jewish Health in Denver, and he says, in some places, such as the Willamette Valley in Oregon or in Northern California...

HAROLD NELSON: Where grass is way far the predominant allergen, then the grass tablets are great.

AUBREY: Mike Tankersley, the allergist back in Memphis, says most of his patients take allergy shots because they have a lot of allergies, but about 1 in 10 do take the tablets. He says over-the-counter medications, like the nasal steroids and antihistamines¹⁰, work too, but they offer just temporary relief of symptoms. The shots and tablets aim to fix the root cause.

TANKERSLEY: And that's the big advantage of immunotherapy. We're really shooting for a cure.

AUBREY: A way to end or reduce symptoms for the long term. Allison Aubrey, NPR News.

1 allergies   

n.[医]过敏症；[口]厌恶，反感；（对食物、花粉、虫咬等的）过敏症( allergy的名词复数 )；变态反应，变应性

参考例句：

• Food allergies can result in an enormous variety of different symptoms. 食物过敏会引发很多不同的症状。 来自辞典例句
• Let us, however, examine one of the most common allergies; hayfever. 现在让我们来看看最常见的变态反应的一种--枯草热。 来自辞典例句

2 allergy   

n.(因食物、药物等而引起的)过敏症

参考例句：

• He developed an allergy to pollen.他对花粉过敏。
• The patient had an allergy to penicillin.该患者对青霉素过敏。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 treks   

n.远距离行走 ( trek的名词复数 )；长途跋涉，艰难的旅程（尤指在山区）v.艰苦跋涉，徒步旅行( trek的第三人称单数 )；（尤指在山中）远足，徒步旅行，游山玩水

参考例句：

• And visiting companies and completing job treks are becoming much more important in the job search. 参观公司、进行实地考察在找工作中变得重要得多。 来自互联网
• These range from treks around Mont an ascent of North Africa's highest mountain, Mount Toubkal. 参与者是徒步绕勃朗峰，然后攀登北非最高峰托布卡尔山。 来自互联网

5 formulated   

v.构想出( formulate的过去式和过去分词 )；规划；确切地阐述；用公式表示

参考例句：

• He claims that the writer never consciously formulated his own theoretical position. 他声称该作家从未有意识地阐明他自己的理论见解。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This idea can be formulated in two different ways. 这个意思可以有两种说法。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

6 pollen   

n.[植]花粉

参考例句：

• Hummingbirds have discovered that nectar and pollen are very nutritious.蜂鸟发现花蜜和花粉是很有营养的。
• He developed an allergy to pollen.他对花粉过敏。

7 pollens   

n.花粉( pollen的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Brownian movement of pollens also shows the fractal characteristics. 花粉的布朗运动轨迹也具有分形特征。 来自互联网
• In contrast, C. sinensis var. sinensis and assamica couldn't be distinguished by the morphology of pollens. 至于不同地区的台湾山茶之间、或是茶与阿萨姆茶之间，皆无法以花粉形态来区分。 来自互联网

8 mites   

n.（尤指令人怜悯的）小孩( mite的名词复数 )；一点点；一文钱；螨

参考例句：

• The only discovered animals are water bears, mites, microscopic rotifers. 能够发现的动物只有海蜘蛛、螨和微小的轮虫。 来自辞典例句
• Mites are frequently found on eggs. 螨会经常出现在蛋上。 来自辞典例句

9 asthma   

n.气喘病，哮喘病

参考例句：

• I think he's having an asthma attack.我想他现在是哮喘病发作了。
• Its presence in allergic asthma is well known.它在过敏性气喘中的存在是大家很熟悉的。

10 antihistamines   

n.抗组织胺药( antihistamine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Cough suppressants and some antihistamines may help quiet an annoying cough. 镇咳药和一些抗组织胺类药物能帮助驱除烦人的咳嗽。 来自互联网
• Antihistamines are the medications most commonly used to diminish allergic symptoms. 抗组胺药是药物最常用的，以减少过敏症状。 来自互联网