Allergic asthma is a long-term condition characterized by symptoms like wheezing, coughing and tightness in the chest. Allergic reactions may be triggered by allergens like pollen, dust mites, pet dander and mold spores.
Mayo Clinic allergy specialist James T C Li outlines how allergies and asthma are related, outlining what triggers each condition and why. He suggests avoiding common triggers to create an Asthma Action Plan with your physician.
Diagnosis
Healthcare providers who suspect allergic asthma in you will typically inquire into your symptoms and your family history of allergies and respiratory conditions before performing a physical exam and conducting breathing tests such as spirometry to measure how quickly and how much air you exhale. They will likely suggest allergy testing that involves skin or blood tests to see what substances or elements might trigger reactions in you.
Allergies make asthma worse by narrowing and producing additional mucus from tightening airways, leading to tightened breathing passages and extra mucus production. People with asthma are particularly sensitive to pollen from trees, grasses and weeds; mold spores; animal dander (from feathered or furry animals); dust mites (which live in bedding, furniture and carpeting and can trigger asthma in some people); dust mites; food; as well as pollen from trees, grasses & weeds). These allergens contain pollen from trees & co.; mold spores from trees; mold spores from mold spores; mold spores; animal dander (feat); dust mites live in bedding, furniture & carpeting which contain pollen from feathered/furry animal/furry animal; dust mites which live within carpeting/carpeting which infests/carpet/carpet/carpet/carpet/carpet/carpet/food sources can trigger/trigger asthma symptoms for some individuals triggering/triggering/triggering their symptoms/anotherwise known as/or you may become sensitized/sensitive to pollen/tree/grass/weed pollen from trees/ grass/weeds etc; mold spore; pollen from trees/grass and/weed pollen/ mold spore; pollen (which often live among other textile/carpeting); dust mite/carpet dust mite/carpet causing dust mite dust mite thereby trigger your allergies/food and so it trigger asthma trigger spore triggered. Food allergen.
Skin testing with patch tests or skin provocation testing (PT) can help identify allergy triggers. Your doctor will apply small amounts of the suspected allergen on a patch and put it on your back or chest for 48 hours; if it becomes red, swollen and itchy after this timeframe, that indicates an allergy reaction against that substance. ELISA or RAST blood tests can also measure levels of antibodies called IgE directed against certain allergens.
Your healthcare provider will develop a treatment plan based on your symptoms, allergy testing and lung function tests, as well as follow-up visits where they assess how you’re doing and hear about any additional symptoms that arise.
Treatment
Once an allergist identifies the triggers for your allergic asthma (via skin or blood tests), treatment options could include lifestyle modifications, allergy medicines, and quick-relief medicines inhalable directly. You may even require a device known as a nebulizer which delivers medicine directly into your lungs.
Some individuals with allergic asthma may benefit from medication to block immunoglobulin E (IgE), which is involved in immune reactions against allergens that causes allergic asthma. One such drug is called Omalizumab (Xolair), administered as an injection and must only be given by trained healthcare providers and in hospital settings.
Allergy medicines such as Azelastine nasal spray (Astepro) and Cetirizine pills (Zyrtec) can help reduce histamines produced in your body that cause runny nose and itchy eyes, while nasal corticosteroid sprays like Fluticasone (Flonase) help decrease inflammation in both your nose and lungs.
Allergy immunotherapy, also known as desensitization, can teach your body to tolerate allergens over time. Your allergist can administer shots or tablets that dissolve under your tongue to facilitate this treatment and can provide shots or tablets over 3-6 years – although this takes patience! To stay on top of your condition and ensure it does not escalate further it is also important to avoid allergens that make symptoms worse and follow up regularly with your physician; this will keep it under control and help ensure it doesn’t get out of hand!
Prevention
Establishing the proper treatment and avoiding asthma triggers are key to helping manage symptoms and attacks. Your physician will review your symptoms, family medical history and perform lung tests such as spirometry or fractional exhaled nitrous oxide (FeNO) tests to check for asthma; additionally they may want to know more about what causes flare ups of asthma symptoms in you and would also like to understand what makes it better or worse.
Avoiding allergens like dust mites, mold spores, pet dander and pollen can help people with asthma manage symptoms more effectively. Environmental tobacco smoke should also be avoided to protect one from an increase in wheezing, coughing and shortness of breath caused by smoking, which increases wheezing coughing shortness of breath causing asthma symptoms to flare up even if they’ve not been smoking regularly for some time.
Indoor allergens like dust, mold, cockroaches and animals (cats, dogs or hamsters) may trigger asthma symptoms in some people. If you own pets, make sure you regularly wash and brush them in order to minimize allergen exposure.
Allergy medicines can provide relief, and are available with a valid valid valid prescription from your physician. Your physician may give you a long-acting inhaler or injection known as a biologic; allergy medication includes nasal corticosteroid sprays, oral steroids and antihistamines while other asthma management medicines include saline rinses, decongestants and bronchodilators.
Preventing asthma requires a long-term strategy. To remain effective, it’s vital that you visit your physician on an annual basis, take their instructions for treating your asthma effectively, receive an annual flu shot as well as the pneumococcal vaccines (Tdap and PCV15) against pneumonia.
Follow-up
Asthma patients should keep accurate records of the frequency and severity of their symptoms. Peak flow meters should be used to track breathing rates while keeping a diary detailing when their symptoms appear – this information allows their doctors to better diagnose patterns such as worsening in the morning.
Follow-up care is crucial in order to manage asthma effectively and decrease the risk of an exacerbation that requires hospital admission. In order to explore factors influencing adherence to medications and participation in scheduled follow-up visits, we analyzed data from 203 adult-onset new asthma patients primarily seen at either primary health care (PHC) or secondary healthcare (respiratory department) follow-up appointments over 10 years; patients were divided into two groups according to number of scheduled contacts: those having one scheduled contact or less and those having two or more scheduled contacts over 10 years respectively.
Heavy alcohol consumption was identified as one of the strongest predictors for poor participation in planned follow-up visits, so it is imperative that patients with no scheduled contacts or just one or two planned contacts be identified and encouraged to participate. This could be done through measures such as emphasizing asthma management responsibilities such as documenting symptoms and peak flow monitoring as well as screening for coexisting disorders such as hypertension.
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