Low Dose Immunotherapy

Low-Dose Immunotherapy is a revolutionary treatment to help modulate the immune response in patients with autoimmunity, PANS/PANDAS, Lyme, chronic infections, eczema, and other inflammatory conditions.

It’s grounded in a root-cause approach that seeks to restore normal immune function rather than avoiding triggers for life or relying on allergy shots, steroids, and antibiotics.

Many patients who felt that they’d tried everything and run out of options have seen breakthrough results from this highly safe, effective, and convenient therapy.

What Causes Immune Dysfunction?

The conventional approach to chronic infections, autoimmunity, and allergies is to either kill off the triggering pathogens (and good microbes along with them) or suppress immune function. What if there were a better option with fewer side effects and improved outcomes?

Restoring Tolerance & Supporting Immune Function

You can think of LDI in terms of the Goldilocks story. It doesn’t supercharge the immune system to make it overactive or suppress immune function and leave you vulnerable to infection.

LDI helps the immune system respond just right so it can protect you from real danger without mistakenly attacking your body, environmental antigens, or the foods you eat.

How Does Low Dose Immunotherapy (LDI) Work?

 

LDI treatments provide exposure to a broad spectrum of potential antigens (foods, environmental allergens, or pathogens) in extremely low concentrations. These low and periodic exposures allow the immune system to down-regulate its response to the target substances by re-establishing tolerance in regulatory T-cells.

Doses are administered sublingually (under the tongue) every seven to eight weeks at a concentration customized for each patient. Once the ideal concentration is reached, patients see a dramatic improvement in symptoms.

For a deeper dive into how LDI works, when it’s indicated as a treatment, and real patient success stories, check out this podcast interview with Jana Roso.

What conditions can LDI help treat?

This therapy is effective for patients who have lost immune tolerance to certain foods, environmental antigens, or infections and are suffering from widespread inflammation or attacks on their tissue by the immune system.

It can be very successful for those with:

  • Autoimmune disease
  • Lyme and tick-borne illnesses
  • PANS/PANDAS
  • Eczema
  • Severe environmental allergies
  • Extensive food sensitivities

What can I expect with Low Dose Immunotherapy (LDI)?

The entire treatment takes place at home with your doses shipped to you. You will administer each dose sublingually by placing it under your tongue and holding it there for 20 to 30 seconds. This allows the antigens to be absorbed through the mucus membranes in the mouth.

We’ll determine your core dose through the dose titration process. This is the dilution to antigen ratio that reduces or eliminates your symptoms. You’ll take progressively stronger doses fairly close together, until you observe a response (positive or negative). We will then refine your titration to reach your personalized optimal dose.

If you respond optimally, your symptoms will resolve or significantly improve until the following dose in 7 to 8 weeks. Over time you may be able to go longer and longer between doses until you need only one to two treatments per year.

Please note that LDI is not a quick-fix. It takes time to determine the correct dose for each patient and re-establish tolerance, but the results can be life-changing!

If you are a member of our Adaptation Program, we’ll determine an LDI protocol in your regular appointments.

If you are not a patient, you will meet with a provider (Dr. Osgood or Liz Mitchell, our nurse practitioner) to discuss your symptoms, history, and current treatments. Together, we will determine an LDI protocol to best achieve your goals.

Initial One-Hour Consult (waived for patients):

  • GrassRoots Provider ($500)

Dose & Treatment:
This fee covers standard doses for each 7-8 week dosing cycle (the number of doses will vary per patient) and our team’s time to prepare and ship your syringes, review your responses, and manage your titration.

  • $150 per 7-8 week dosing cycle for one to five syringes
  • $35 fee for each additional syringe past the allotted five per dosing cycle (if needed)
  • Shipping costs to send your syringes via USPS Priority

Optional 30-Min Follow-Up Consult:
Follow-up appointments are available if you would like to discuss your LDI protocol in detail beyond the response tracking included in the dose fee.

  • GrassRoots Provider Follow-Up: $250
Who is a good candidate for LDI?

This treatment can be highly effective for patients dealing with a loss of immune tolerance or chronic infections, including those with autoimmune disease, PANS/PANDAS, Lyme and other tick-borne illnesses, eczema, and environmental allergies.

How is LDI different from allergy shots?

Allergy shots provide a substantial dose of only the allergens you tested positive for via skin prick or blood testing. This limited exposure sounds better in theory, but ignores the common issue of cross-reactivity where you develop an immune response to a separate but similar allergen (ex: grasses when you were only allergic to cedar). There is also risk for anaphylaxis and a significant symptom flare due to their concentration levels.

Low-dose immunotherapy provides low levels of exposure to hundreds of allergens to support broad spectrum tolerance and decrease the likelihood of cross-reactivity. There are no injections since the doses are administered sublingually and there is no risk of anaphylaxis.

What kind of results can I expect with LDI?

Once we determine a core dose through the titration process, many patients see their inflammatory symptoms resolve entirely or dramatically improve until their next scheduled dose. Over time, patients may also be able to go longer between doses until they only need one or two treatments per year.

As with any therapy, you will see the best results when it’s paired with a whole-body approach to health that incorporates diet, movement, stress relief, and sleep.

Is LDI safe for children?

In short, yes! Because the concentration of antigen is so low in each dose, there are very few risks with LDI. Some children may experience a temporary flare in symptoms during the dose titration process, but that typically resolves as we zero in on their personal core dose.

Many pediatric patients find LDI much more effective and tolerable than traditional allergy shots or drops and steroid creams.

We particularly recommend LDI for pediatric patients to help them avoid a lifelong dependency on immune medications and to prevent additional inflammatory conditions from developing.

How do I get started?

Begin by reviewing our LDI Patient Handbook.

Call our clinic at 603-277-2199 to schedule your initial consultation with Dr. Osgood or our nurse practitioner. 

If you are a patient, give us a call and we will establish an LDI protocol as part of your treatment plan.