Etanercept urticaria in a patient with psoriasis desensitized using a new method

Abstract

Desensitization is the process of rendering an individual who is allergic to a food or chemical substance like a drug able to tolerate the agent. This is usually accomplished by exposing the patient to incrementally increasing doses, injecting the offending agent over periods of time as is done in situations of grass or tree pollen allergy. In the current case report we demonstrate the first method to desensitize a patient to the anti-TNF medicament etanercept using immune suppressants rather than the older technique of incrementally increasing injection doses.