Allergy Treatment Options | Wilmington, NC

Allergy Shot Hours

Delaney Avenue Office:

- We are now requiring allergy shot appointments at the Delaney Avenue Office.

- Your appointment is a window of time and not the exact time that you must arrive.

Monday: 8:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. 1:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Tuesday: 8:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. 1:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Wednesday: 8:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Thursday: 8:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. 1:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Friday: 8:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Porters Neck Office:

By Appointment Only

***Please Note: We are not currently accepting new allergy shot patients at the Porters Neck location.***

Allergy Treatments

Avoidance

Once your allergy has been diagnosed, and you are aware of the environmental cause of your symptoms, one course of action is to avoid the allergen. However, this is not always possible.
Medication

Several types of over-the-counter or prescription medications may be prescribed to control your allergy symptoms. Our doctors are experts at determining the best medication(s) for you. Allergy medications can be very effective in controlling symptoms but do not cure allergic reactions. Allergy symptoms can only be prevented by changing your immune system's response to the offending allergen.
Immunotherapy

Immunotherapy builds up blocking antibodies by repeated exposure to allergens, reducing your allergic response and possibly eliminating the allergy altogether. When allergen avoidance and medications do not successfully control your allergy symptoms, your doctor may recommend immunotherapy. Through shots or sublingual tablets, your doctor can change your body's response to the problem allergen over time. Immunotherapy can improve or eliminate symptoms, as well as reduce or eliminate the need for medications and future treatment. Research shows that the use of allergy drops builds up the same response as traditional allergy shots without the need for injections or frequent office visits.

Allergy Shot Treatment

Patients should allow at least three days between shots.
Patients should bring their epinephrine device with them on the shot day in case of severe reactions. Patients who do not have an epinephrine device or fail to bring their device with them on the shot day will be required to wait 10-15 minutes after an allergy shot is given to ensure no adverse reaction.
Continue all allergy medications as prescribed by your doctor while receiving allergy shots until instructed to discontinue by a physician.
If asthma symptoms are present, or if you have a fever, allergy injections should be avoided.
Please notify an Allergy Technician or your doctor’s nurse of any changes to your medications, as some classes of medications are contraindicated with immunotherapy (beta-blockers).
If swelling occurs at your injection site: apply ice and/or anti-itch cream (personal preference) to the injection site and take your antihistamine if you have not already. Be sure to alert the Allergy Technician of any adverse reactions prior to your next injection.
Itching, redness, and occasional mild swelling at the injection site are normal. The serum is composed of things to which you are allergic.
Bruising may occur and is also normal.
You should be seen yearly by your ENT physician to keep your allergy injection prescription current and to ensure optimal care.
If you become pregnant, please contact your Allergy Technician.

REMEMBER: A shot reaction can occur at any dose. It is very important to check the injection site and report any reaction to the allergy nurse.

Managing Local Reactions

Open lines of communication are most important during your allergy treatment. Please always keep us informed of your symptom progress. It is only with your regular reports that we will know if the injections are helping you, and if not, we will be anxious to make some further adjustments to give you the best possible symptom relief. After the allergy injection, you may note some redness and itching at the injection site. You should never see a local arm reaction greater than a 50-cent piece size lasting longer than 24 hours. You should never feel “worse” after an injection.

Keeping Our Office Informed is Important

Open lines of communication are most important during your allergy treatment. Please always keep us informed of your symptom progress. It is only with your regular reports that we will know if the injections are helping you, and if not, we will be anxious to make some further adjustments to give you the best possible symptom relief. After the allergy injection, you may note some redness and itching at the injection site. You should never see a local arm reaction greater than a 50-cent piece size lasting longer than 24 hours. You should never feel “worse” after an injection.

Please report any reaction to the nurse before receiving the next treatment dose. Always have Benadryl at home in your medicine cabinet. Benadryl can be taken in the event of hives, rashes, or itching. Caladryl can be applied to the injection site if it itches.

Rarely is there a more systematic reaction such as facial swelling, hives, wheezing, etc. Since this type of reaction usually begins within minutes of receiving injections, you should wait in the allergy office 15 minutes after the injection is given. If these symptoms occur after leaving the office, return to our office or go to the nearest Emergency Room if you feel you are in real trouble. For patients who administer allergy injections at home, if you have an anaphylactic reaction, use Benadryl and, if necessary, your Epi-Pen and call 911. Emergency help is vital for your safety.

Anaphylaxis

Anaphylaxis usually begins five to 30 minutes after the injection:

Mild – Nasal congestion, sneezing, itching of hands, feet, neck or genitalia, water eyes, flushing, hoarseness, mild cough, metallic taste, faintness.

Moderate – Hives, sweating, throat tightness, lump in the throat, choking, shortness of breath, wheezing, chest tightness, nausea, abdominal cramps, headaches.

Severe – Severe throat tightness, severe wheezing, tachycardia, hypotension, shock, fecal or urinary incontinence, feeling of doom.

If you need allergy treatment, please don’t hesitate to call our office to make an appointment.