Allergic asthma is caused by airborne allergens like pet dander, mold spores and pollen which enter your body and trigger an immune response that produces antibodies called immunoglobulin E (IgE). When this happens, your immune system responds by producing IgE.
Your passageways swell and produce mucus, leading to breathing difficulties such as coughing and wheezing.
Symptoms
If a person with allergies breathes something they shouldn’t — such as mold, pet dander (dried skin flakes) or cockroaches — their immune system responds by producing chemicals which irritate their airways and trigger symptoms of asthma like wheezing (which makes a high-pitched sound when they breathe) as well as congestion, runny nose and itchy eyes.
As asthma is a chronic disease, its symptoms and attacks can fluctuate throughout your lifetime. To effectively manage asthma symptoms and attacks, the key is understanding your triggers and then minimizing those triggers as much as possible. Should symptoms appear unexpectedly, be sure to visit a healthcare provider immediately.
In order to properly diagnose allergic asthma, a doctor will need to gather your family medical history and conduct a physical exam. They may then use lung function tests and allergy testing (skin test or blood work) to establish whether seasonal or year-round allergies may be contributing. An allergist specializes in treating allergies and asthma and will be able to recommend the most suitable treatment plan for you.
Diagnosis
Healthcare providers will assess wheezing, coughing and shortness of breath in you or your child as well as family histories of allergies in order to diagnose asthma. They’ll conduct a physical exam as well as interview you about lifestyle and behavior habits while looking at test results to come up with an asthma treatment plan.
Your doctor may order lung function tests called spirometry, imaging tests such as chest X-rays and allergy skin and blood tests to identify which allergens you’re sensitive to. These tests measure how well air moves through your lungs – which could be compromised by pollution, smoke from wood fires or tobacco use or strong scents such as strong perfumes.
Allergens are particles that enter your body and trigger your immune system to produce immunoglobulin E (IgE), causing your airways to narrow and producing symptoms associated with allergic asthma.
Allergens can include pollen from trees, grasses, or weeds; mold; dust mites; pet dander, foods; aspirin or acetaminophen (Tylenol); as well as medications like aspirin or acetaminophen (Tylenol). While inhalers for immediate relief may help when experiencing an allergic reaction; long-term control medicine is important in helping avoid future outbreaks and maintaining overall health.
Treatment
Once a person and their doctor have identified which allergens trigger asthma symptoms, they can work together to develop a treatment plan. This may involve avoiding triggers altogether while taking quick-relief medications for immediate symptom relief as well as long-term control medicines that help manage symptoms over time.
Allergens are substances that trigger an immune response in the lungs and nose. Your body produces IgE antibodies in response to allergens, leading to an release of chemicals which cause inflammation and swelling; this leads to breathing difficulty, wheezing, coughing and other symptoms of asthmatic attacks such as runny nose, itchy eyes/mouth/sneezing as well as congestion of nasal passageways.
Dependent upon an individual’s health needs and symptoms, healthcare providers may recommend allergy testing or specific allergen immunotherapy (desensitization). Desensitization involves gradually exposing oneself to smaller and higher quantities of an allergen over time in order to decrease immune system responses and relieve asthmatic symptoms.
Quick-relief medicines come in the form of tablets and sprays designed for use with an inhaler, providing instantaneous relief during an attack. Longer-term medications known as controllers may be taken daily to prevent attacks; these can be delivered using either an inhaler or nebulizer device. A new class of injectable biologic medicines called biologics is currently under study as a possible solution, helping the immune system better respond to allergens, thus alleviating symptoms more efficiently and potentially decreasing them altogether.
Prevention
Though there is no cure for allergic asthma, steps can be taken to manage symptoms. The first step should be identifying your triggers and avoiding them; your doctor can assist in helping identify any potential triggers, such as pet dander, mold spores, strong chemicals or smoke that might exacerbate symptoms.
Allergens can trigger asthma by inflaming airways and producing extra mucus, tightening breathing tubes or tightening surrounding muscles which enclose breathing tubes – these changes make breathing harder, increasing spasming or tightening, or leading to life-threatening reactions such as anaphylaxis, which makes breathing even harder than before.
To combat allergies and asthma, keep your home dust-free by regularly washing rugs, using vinyl covers on mattresses and pillows, cleaning all furniture with a damp cloth once per week using vinyl covers, vacuuming using HEPA filter vacuums, keeping humidity levels at their lowest, keeping pets out of bedrooms, limiting outdoor time during periods with high pollen counts (trees, grass and weeds release pollen in spring/fall cycles) as well as quitting smoking since secondhand smoke exposure increases risks associated with allergies/asthmas in children.
Food allergies can trigger asthma, eczema and other skin conditions in infants; therefore they should either breastfeed for four to six months or use hypoallergenic formulas to bolster their immune systems and possibly avoid milk allergy and atopic dermatitis. If necessary, foods like peanuts, eggs, cow’s milk, wheat, soya beans and shellfish should be introduced gradually after four to six months if the child appears tolerant to them.
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