It's a missed revolution for allergy vaccines in Italy. International guidelines recommend allergen-specific immunotherapy (ITS) as the best therapy that can change the natural course of respiratory and insect bite allergies. But while 6 million, or half of all allergy patients, are candidates for vaccines, only 2 percent are currently using them. The paradoxical situation is due to lack of reimbursability, lack of an adequate allergy care network in the territory, and lack of information. Issuing the alert are experts from the Italian Society of Allergology, Asthma and Clinical Immunology (SIAAIC). Also weighing in is the lack of knowledge about allergic diseases, as shown by the results of a recent survey, conducted between May and July, of a sample of more than 1,000 Italians over the age of 18. The data show that 20 percent say they suffer from respiratory allergies, but only 22 percent of respondents recognize the allergist as the referral specialist to whom they should turn in case of need. Regarding respiratory allergies, 53% of the sample believes they are little or not at all informed, and even those who suffer from this problem say they mostly rely on word of mouth with friends and relatives.
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