Allergy shots (immunotherapy)

How allergy shots work

Your shot vials are mixed for you based on your allergy testing and history. Each injection holds a carefully measured amount of the pollens, dust mite, animal dander or mold you react to. Repeated exposure in small, controlled doses shifts how your immune system responds, so over time it overreacts less to particles that should be harmless.

Shots work alongside your usual allergy and asthma medicines rather than replacing them right away. As treatment takes effect, many patients are able to step down those medicines with their provider’s guidance.

Before you start, your provider decides which allergens belong in your mix and at what strength. Not every positive test needs treatment, only the triggers that line up with your symptoms.

Build-up and maintenance phases

Treatment happens in two stages. Your provider sets the schedule and adjusts it if you have a reaction, get sick or miss doses.

How fast you move up depends on how your body handles each dose. Large swelling where the shot was given, or any symptoms afterward, means we hold or repeat a dose before going higher.

• Build-up phase: shots once or twice a week, with the dose increasing a little each time. This usually takes 3 to 6 months.
• Cluster build-up: an option for some patients that gives several injections per visit, so you reach maintenance in weeks rather than months.
• Maintenance phase: once you reach your target dose, shots are spaced every 2 to 4 weeks.
• Total length: maintenance usually continues for 3 to 5 years, which gives the best chance of benefit that lasts after you stop.

May be a good fit if…

• Your allergy symptoms last for months or all year, even with daily medicines
• Allergy medicines cause side effects, or you would like to take less of them
• Allergies make your asthma harder to control
• You have had a serious reaction to a bee, wasp or fire ant sting
• You can come to the clinic regularly for several years

Walk-in shot hours at three clinics

You don’t need an appointment for routine shots. Come in during posted shot hours at our Arlington, Keller or Mansfield clinic, check in, and a member of our clinical team will give your injection. Most patients choose the location closest to home, school or work. Shot hours differ by location, so check the posted schedule before you head over.

After every shot, you stay in the clinic for 30 minutes so we can watch for a reaction. Plan on roughly 40 minutes per visit in total. Bring homework, a book or a laptop, and tell the front desk right away if you feel anything unusual during the wait.

What allergy shots can help with

Allergy shots are one of the few treatments that target the allergic response itself rather than only easing symptoms. They are not used for food allergy; for foods, our Food Allergy Center offers oral immunotherapy instead.

In North Texas, many patients are treated for a blend of seasonal pollens and year-round triggers, since cedar, oak, grasses and ragweed together cover most of the calendar. For insect venom allergy, shots are especially valuable because they can greatly lower the risk of a severe reaction to future stings.

• Seasonal allergies to tree, grass and weed pollen, including mountain cedar and ragweed
• Year-round allergies to dust mites, cats, dogs and mold
• Allergic asthma, where shots may reduce symptoms and reliance on rescue inhalers
• Insect venom allergy from bees, wasps, hornets, yellow jackets and fire ants
• Allergic eye symptoms that return every season

Is it worth the commitment?

Shots take time, and that is the honest trade-off. In return, many patients find their symptoms ease, they use fewer medicines, and the improvement often holds for years after the last injection. In children with hay fever, starting shots may lower the chance of developing asthma, though not every child will see that effect.

If regular clinic visits feel hard to fit in, ask about sublingual drops, which are taken at home. We will help you weigh both options against your schedule, your allergies and your budget.

Some people should wait or choose a different option, including those with severe asthma that is not under control or certain heart conditions. Your provider will go over your health history and medicines with you before your first shot.

What to expect, step by step

1. Testing and consultation

   We confirm your triggers with skin or blood testing and review whether shots fit your health, medicines and goals.

2. Your vials are prepared

   Your custom allergen extract is mixed into a personal set of vials, labeled with your name and dosing schedule.

3. First shot and observation

   Your first injection is given in the clinic, followed by the 30-minute wait you will repeat at every visit.

4. Build-up visits

   Walk in once or twice a week during shot hours as your dose climbs. Before each injection, we check how you did after the last one.

5. Maintenance and check-ins

   Once you reach your target dose, shots drop to every 2 to 4 weeks. Periodic visits with your provider track progress and decide when to stop.

Before your visit

• Tell us about any new medicines, especially beta-blockers, which can make reactions harder to treat.
• Skip your shot and call us if you have a fever or an asthma flare that day.
• Avoid hard exercise for a couple of hours before and after each injection.
• Bring your epinephrine auto-injector to shot visits if one has been prescribed for you.
• Let us know if you are pregnant or planning a pregnancy, since your dosing plan may change.

Safety

The most common side effect is a red, itchy or swollen spot where the shot was given, which usually settles within a day. Rarely, a shot can cause sneezing, hives, wheezing or a more serious allergic reaction. That is why every patient waits in the clinic after each injection, where our staff are trained and equipped to treat reactions right away and adjust your dose if needed.