Long-term sublingual bacterial immunotherapy prevents ear, nose and throat infections: A real-life study.

Abstract

Objective: Bacterial extracts have been used for many years to prevent airway infections. Recent findings suggest that immunity can be trained by inducing an immunological memory in both the innate and acquired immune response. This real-life observational study investigated the potential of sublingual bacterial immunotherapy in the prevention of ear, nose, and throat infections.

Methods: Patients received sublingual bacterial immunotherapy for 12 months and were followed for 24 months. The number of ear, nose, and throat infection episodes from the previous year was recorded during the initial visit based on the patient's clinical history. Patients were then followed up with visits every 2 months, and the occurrence of ear, nose, and throat infection episodes was documented at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months after the start of the study.

Results: The results demonstrated a strong potential for preventing ear, nose, and throat infections, with a reduction in the number of episodes by 75.68%, 82.27%, 82.78%, and 89.88% at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months, respectively. No adverse effects related to sublingual bacterial immunotherapy administration were reported.

Conclusion: The results suggested that long-term sublingual bacterial immunotherapy is safe and effectively prevents ear, nose, and throat infections, even after treatment ends.