Allergic asthma can be prevented with allergy testing, avoiding allergens and taking appropriate medication – from rescue inhalers for quick relief and long-term control to long-acting control medication.
Your allergist may also suggest immunotherapy treatments that will reduce your body’s response to allergens that trigger symptoms, with follow-up appointments to monitor how successfully you’re managing them.
Symptoms
Wheezing and shortness of breath are two hallmark symptoms of allergic asthma, caused by inflamed airways that produce extra mucus that makes breathing difficult. Allergic asthma is most frequently triggered by pollen, dust mites, animal dander, mold spores or tree, grass or flower pollen inhalation; other triggers include smoking aerosol cleaning products with strong odors or cold temperatures; these irritants tighten airways further so they produce mucus more readily while simultaneously increasing inflammation.
Food allergies may lead to symptoms of allergic asthma in some individuals; this form of allergy must be diagnosed and managed under medical supervision.
Healthcare providers typically diagnose allergic asthma by interviewing and physically examining a person, reviewing past history of allergies and conducting skin testing. If symptoms continue, medications to reduce inflammation and control immune function – like anti-immunoglobulin E therapy – can be used to help prevent further episodes. This treatment interferes with how IgE reacts with allergens; injections or tablets that dissolve under the tongue are administered for this treatment method. Corticosteroid injections, inhaled steroids or allergy immunotherapy may also be effective against allergic attacks.
Diagnosis
As part of diagnosing allergic asthma, the first step in diagnosis involves gathering an accurate medical history. Your physician will want to know when and where your symptoms arise, as well as any additional health conditions you have or have had in the past. They may also inquire if anyone in your family has allergies or has undergone allergy testing.
An examination involves using a stethoscope to monitor your breathing. Your physician will also take samples of mucus from the back of your throat in order to detect any possible mucus buildup that could trigger coughs or wheezes, and order chest X-rays or imaging studies of your lungs (CT scan or magnetic resonance image, MRA) that might reveal structural abnormalities that may contribute to breathing issues.
Allergy tests can assist in diagnosing allergic asthma. These tests involve injecting small amounts of allergens such as cat dander or pollen into your skin and then watching for any reactions such as redness and swelling. Another type of allergy test measures levels of IgE antibodies produced by your immune system when they recognize certain allergens.
Some doctors use a provocation test to confirm an allergic asthma diagnosis. During this test, you’ll receive methacholine medication and watch how your airways respond; if they narrow when breathing in this medicine, then this could indicate allergic asthma.
Treatment
Treatment for allergic asthma includes quick-relief medicines to help you breathe when symptoms flare, as well as long-term control medications to reduce inflammation. Your doctor may also suggest other tests, including spirometry or chest X-ray or blood tests.
Your doctor will likely prescribe quick-relief inhalers (also known as rescue medications) that you take on demand to treat your symptoms, such as bronchodilators which relax muscles in your airway to open it up more freely for breathing and ease your symptoms within 20 minutes – these medicines may include Budesonide Pulmicort Flexhaler and Mometasone Asmanex for instance.
Corticosteroids, anti-inflammatory medicines that you take daily may also help prevent asthma flare-ups. Examples include Fluticasone (Flonase), Budesonide (Pulmicort), and ciclesonide (Alvesco).
If your allergy symptoms remain, consulting with your physician might suggest trying to eliminate what triggers them – like mold, pollen or pet dander – as much as possible. For those suffering from allergic rhinitis (hay fever), nasal allergy sprays or stronger antihistamines might be more appropriate than allergy shots. Allergy shots – small amounts of allergens gradually reduce immune system response – may also help ease allergic asthma; one such injection medication called Xolair reduces IgE levels while another new injectable medicine called mepolizumab (Nucala) reduce inflammation in lungs which means you need less of other maintenance medications altogether.
Prevention
Though asthma cannot be cured, medical treatments can help control symptoms and avoid allergic reactions and attacks. Preventative measures include avoiding allergens that trigger asthma attacks, medication, regular checkups and using skin prick tests (in which a needle pierces your skin with different allergens to assess potential allergies) to test for allergies; if one of these substances reacts with raised, red or discolored bumps called hives and swelling on contact). A healthcare provider will also use spirometers to measure how fast and deeply your lungs inhale air when inhaled in.
People can prevent allergens that trigger asthma by installing air filters in both their home and car, regularly washing bedding and avoiding stuffed animals. They should also purchase allergen-proof mattress and pillow covers and use a vacuum cleaner with high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter filtration; when gardening or performing other chores that create dust and dirt they can wear a mask to keep at bay; during pollen or mold counts are high they should stay indoors to limit cutting grass, weeding or engaging in any outdoor activities like cutting grass, weeding etc.
People should get their annual flu shot and make sure to wash hands frequently to prevent infections that could worsen asthma symptoms or allergies. Smoking should also be avoided since secondhand smoke has been known to induce symptoms in nonsmokers who were never smokers themselves. People should monitor air quality reports via radio or TV and limit outdoor time during pollutant spikes.
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