Monthly Archives: September 2016

All About Nasal Allergy

A nasal allergy is a form of seasonal allergy that comes about during specific times of the year. In most cases, it comes about when the pollen count in the air is high. The condition is characterized by a runny nose, nose itching, and sneezing.

Impact of nasal allergy

While the allergies aren’t known to be life threatening, they have can have a great impact on the quality of your life. One of the impacts is that they can prevent you from leading a normal life. When you sick you don’t enjoy what life has to offer. The same thing applies when you are having the allergy. The condition can also prevent you from concentrating on your work. As an employee, the allergies lower your productivity and you can easily lose your job. If you are in business, you risk losing clients when you can’t deliver to their expectations. The allergies can also take a toll on your finances. This is common when you don’t know the condition that you are suffering from. In the bid of trying out different medications, you end up spending a lot of money.

Tips to consider when suffering from nasal allergies

As mentioned above, these seasonal allergies aren’t known to be life threatening but they can result in complications. To be on the safe side you shouldn’t ignore allergy symptoms. It’s common for people to ignore the sneezing and coughing as they believe that it will go away after some time. To avoid complications, you should visit an allergy doctor regardless of how minor the symptoms are. The doctor will analyze your condition and recommend the best medication. Another thing that you should do is avoid exposure to the pollen that is known to be the prime cause of the allergy. This calls for you to avoid going outside when the pollen count is high.

Nasal allergy treatment

Prevention is always better than cure but if you have tried everything but the symptoms are showing up, you should take the necessary medications. Some of the best medications are the steroid nasal sprays. They work by reducing the swelling of the nasal passages and often recommended as the first line of treatment due to their effectiveness and ease of use. These medications are a temporary fix. If you want a genuine cure, you should consider undertaking immunotherapy. Here you visit an allergy clinic and you are exposed to small amounts of the allergen. After some time, you develop resistance to the allergen and you no longer develop the symptoms when you are exposed to the allergen.

Everything You Need To Know About Drug allergy

Medications consist of powerful drugs that work to help you fight against diseases and infections. Since we are different, we respond differently to the same drugs. While some people don’t react to certain medications, others develop a drug allergy.

How to identify a drug allergy

Studies show that many people don’t know that they are allergic to a given drug which can be catastrophic. To help you out, here are signs that you are allergic to a drug: difficulty in breathing, high fever, increased heart rate, skin rash, swelling of the mouth or the face and pain in your joints or muscles. In most cases, people are allergic to a given ingredient in a drug. You should speak to your allergy doctor who will help you identify the ingredient that you are allergic to. Common medications that cause allergy are: antibiotics, anticonvulsants, aspirin, and anti-inflammatory medications.

How to deal with drug allergies

As mentioned above, drug allergies can be fatal. After you have developed the allergy symptoms you should never ignore them. Regardless of how minor the symptoms are, you should visit your doctor who will analyze your condition and recommend the best medication. If you already know the drugs that you are allergic to, you should make the work of your doctor easy by notifying him/her about it.

If you are showing signs of severe allergic reaction such as having hives all over your body, feeling faint and trouble breathing you should contact 911 immediately. In the emergency room, the doctors will give allergy shots such as epinephrine and antihistamines. If you are showing allergy symptoms such as itching, belly pain, hives, vomiting and nausea, it’s recommended that you contact your allergy doctor who will advise you on what you need to do to fix the problem. If you are suffering from mild allergic reactions you should go for over-the-counter medications such as antihistamines that will help you in easing the symptoms.

To prevent the allergic reactions, you should avoid the medications that you are allergic to. To be on the safe side, never stop taking the medications without informing your doctor. If you are getting treatment for a given condition and you can’t change the medication, the doctor may recommend the desensitization method. This is where you start taking small amounts of the medication under the doctor’s supervision and slowly increase the dosage. This allows the immune system to get used to the medicine and within a given time you are no longer allergic to the drug.

Conclusion

Drug allergies can be fatal if you ignore them. To have an easy time, visit a reputable allergy clinic.

Tips About Seasonal Allergies

Seasonal allergies are one of the most common allergies that most people suffer from. For you to have an easy time with the allergies you need to consider a number of tips:

Never ignore the allergy symptoms

It’s common for people not to suffer from allergies for a long time only for them to develop symptoms later on when they are exposed to the causative factors. For example, it’s common for people to start sneezing when they are exposed to pets. In most cases the symptoms are mild and you can easily ignore them. When you are continually exposed to the allergen, the symptoms can get out of control which can be fatal.

To be on the safe side you should never ignore the symptoms regardless of how mild they are. You should visit an allergy clinic to determine if the symptoms have dire effects on you.

Don’t wait too long before taking the allergy medications

When you regularly have allergy attacks you shouldn’t wait for the allergy symptoms before you take the medications. Allergists recommend that you take the medications before the allergy season begins. You shouldn’t bother with visiting the allergy expert—you should simply take the medications that worked for you in the past. The best time to take the medications is when the weather starts getting warm.

Don’t spend money blindly on over the counter allergy medications

There are many spring allergy treatment options that you can go with. Over the counter medications are the most common option chosen by many people. Many people opt for it as it’s easy to take the medications. One of the most common misconceptions is that the most expensive medications are the best but this isn’t always the truth. There are plenty of cheap over the counter medications that you can take and be as effective (if not better) than the expensive ones.

To avoid wasting your money on expensive medications, you should first visit your allergy doctor who will diagnose your condition and recommend the best medications that you should take.

Stay away from allergy-causing pollen

The main cause of spring allergies is pollen. To prevent the allergy symptoms you should do your best and stay away from the pollen. This calls for you to be cautious of clothes, shoes, body and any other items that might bring pollen in your house. You should also avoid being outdoors when the pollen count is high.

Understanding Sinus Disease

Sinus disease or sinusitis is a medical condition characterized by the inflammation of the lining of the sinus cavities on the skull. Sinus cavities are usually air-filled and aid in insulating the skull, reduce the skull’s weight and allow the voice to resonate within it. Infections and allergies cause the sinus tissues to get inflamed, red and swollen thus the disease.

Types of sinus disease

There are two main types of this condition: acute and chronic sinusitis:

Acute sinusitis: It lasts for 4 weeks or less and occurs no more than 3 times a year. It is characterized by cold-like symptoms such as stuffy nose, facial pain, cough, congestion, and loss of smell. In some cases, you may have bad breath, fatigue, and fever.

Chronic sinusitis: The condition lasts for 8 weeks or longer and occurs more than four times a year. Symptoms of the condition include: fever, nasal blockage, a feeling of congestion in your face, pus in the nasal cavity, and nasal discharge. In rare cases, you will have dental pain, headaches, fatigue and bad breath.

Diagnosis of sinusitis

Initially, the condition can be diagnosed by a general practitioner. In children, the condition can be diagnosed by a pediatrician. If you are suffering from chronic sinusitis, you may be referred to an ENT specialist. If the condition is caused by allergies, you may be referred to an allergist. During the diagnosis, the doctors use a nasal endoscope which is a tube-like instrument equipped with tiny cameras and lights. The device helps the doctors to see the inside of the nose and sinus thus they are able to tell you whether you are suffering from the condition. In addition to using an endoscope, the doctors may also use other diagnosis methods such as CT scan and ultrasound.

If left undiagnosed and untreated, complications of sinusitis can occur resulting to severe medical conditions and even death. If you are suffering from headaches, soft tissue swelling, and fever, you should seek medical advice immediately.

Treatment options for sinus disease

The treatment options depend on the condition that you are suffering from. If suffering from acute sinusitis, the doctor may recommend that you use steam inhalations and decongestants. If suffering from chronic sinusitis your doctor may recommend that you use vaporizers, saline drops, and decongestants. If you have allergies, your allergy doctor may recommend that you take antihistamine.

If antibiotics and other medications have failed to open the sinuses, the doctors may recommend that you undertake a sinus surgery. Full recovery takes 4-6 weeks but you can return to your normal duties within 5-7 days after surgery.