Allergies and asthma often go hand-in-hand. Many of the same triggers for allergic rhinitis — pollen, dust mites, pet dander — also induce symptoms or attacks of asthma in certain people.
Doctors can easily diagnose allergies and asthma using skin prick tests or blood tests. Allergy immunotherapy — treatment using injections or tablets that dissolve under the tongue — may reduce allergic reactions and help prevent asthma flare-ups.
Symptoms
Allergic asthma is a form of asthma triggered by inhaling allergens such as dust mites, pet dander (flakes of skin from fur or feathers), mold spores and pollen from trees, grasses and weeds. When inhaled, your immune system releases chemicals to cause inflammation and narrowing of airways – symptoms that may also be triggered by exercise, respiratory infections, cold air or stress; they can result in wheezing coughing shortness of breath as a result.
An allergic reaction occurs when your immune system misidentifies an allergen as a potential threat and attacks it, leading to swelling of nasal passages and excess mucus production – both of which make breathing difficult. Furthermore, this inflammatory response can make muscles around your airways tighten (bronchoconstriction) further impeding breathing ability.
Healthcare professionals can diagnose allergic asthma by asking you about your symptoms and family history of allergies and asthma, performing physical exams and ordering lung function tests to assess how your lungs are working, using skin tests or poking your skin with needles dipped in an allergen, and monitoring for red or discolored areas that itch after having had an allergic reaction – such as hives or raised bumps that resemble bee stings – after administering these procedures.
Diagnosis
Asthma patients often suffer from airway inflammation that narrows, making breathing harder than before, often manifested through coughing, wheezing and shortness of breath symptoms.
Your doctor can diagnose asthma by reviewing your medical history, including family histories of allergies or eczema (a bumpy rash caused by allergic reactions). They will conduct a physical exam and lung function tests; they may also conduct allergy testing via skin or blood samples that will indicate whether seasonal or year-round allergies such as pet dander, dust mites or mold exist – these can also identify whether you have eosinophilic inflammation in the airways – something associated with allergic asthma.
Your doctor will also ask about your triggers and frequency of asthma symptoms, so keeping a diary may help identify what’s triggering them for you. Since everyone’s triggers can vary – for instance, some common ones include smoking, air pollution, exercise, viruses and perfumed/chemical-scented perfumes and chemicals; other triggers could include diet changes, extreme emotions or medications taken; pregnancy or menstruation could be another trigger!
If you are having difficulty pinpointing your triggers, your doctor might perform a provocation test by inhaling a substance known to trigger asthma – for instance methacholine. They’ll then measure how breathing has changed as they try to determine whether or not methacholine made your condition worse.
Treatment
There is no cure for allergic asthma, but many effective treatments exist that can help people manage their symptoms. Common approaches include avoiding allergens that trigger attacks, taking medications to relieve airway inflammation when an attack does occur and tracking asthma signs and symptoms over time to see how effective treatment plans are working.
Antihistamines and corticosteroids are among the many medications prescribed to treat allergic asthma. Rescue inhalers open up airways quickly to ease breathing while long-acting inhalers reduce inflammation and help prevent asthma attacks, while antihistamines relieve allergy symptoms like runny noses and watery eyes, corticosteroids help control asthma by decreasing airway swelling caused by inflammation, while leukotriene modifiers reduce lung inflammation while improving asthma symptoms; healthcare providers may prescribe leukotriene modifiers as leukotriene modifiers while biologics modify an individual’s immune system to aid asthma control.
Healthcare providers can also assist individuals in avoiding triggers by conducting an allergy blood test (specific IgE). These tests can identify allergens which are triggering their symptoms, and any healthcare professional with laboratory access can perform them to identify them more efficiently – and hopefully reduce medication needs to manage symptoms.
Prevention
Avoiding allergens that trigger asthma symptoms is key for those living with the condition and helps reduce or avoid episodes. Doing this may prevent or lessen severity of attacks.
Allergens are substances that can trigger allergic reactions in individuals, such as runny nose, sneezing, itchy eyes or skin and wheezing or shortness of breath. Some examples of allergens that can trigger asthma include pollen, mold spores, dust mites, pet dander (dried skin cells from an animal), animal fur or feathers, strong chemicals or smells, cockroaches and strong chemicals or smells; pollen is another potential trigger as are viral respiratory infections; exercise stress; certain foods/medicines (like sulfites aspirin or certain high blood pressure drugs); cold air pollution; cold air/environmental pollutants/smoke-off emissions.
Avoiding allergens that trigger asthma is the key to managing its symptoms effectively, while keeping a diary will enable both yourself and your doctor to better identify which factors trigger it for you.
Though allergic asthma can be outgrown or even cured, its changes to your lungs cannot fully reverse themselves. With proper management and regular vaccinations against influenza and pneumonia, most individuals with asthma can still lead healthy lives. It is therefore extremely important that all individuals living with asthma get themselves protected against potential issues by getting immunized against flu and pneumonia viruses.
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