It’s never pleasant when a trip to Machicomoco State Park ends in a slew of allergy symptoms. If you add in a sudden asthma attack, you might find it hard to enjoy your otherwise pleasant park day.
Allergy immunotherapy is an excellent treatment option to reduce your symptoms over time. Beyond allergy symptom relief, people with allergic asthma—asthma triggered by certain allergens—may also experience some relief.
What is Allergic Asthma?
Allergic asthma is a breathing condition in which the airways tighten when you inhale an allergen such as pollen, mold spores or pet dander. The asthma symptoms may include wheezing, shortness of breath, coughing or chest tightening. Allergic asthma flare-ups will likely present with other allergy symptoms, like congestion, itchy eyes and throat, sneezing and hives.
How Does Immunotherapy Help?
Allergy immunotherapy will reduce the severity of your immune system’s reaction to an allergen. In the case of allergic asthma, that reduced severity can make asthma attacks less frequent, less severe or both. The treatment works by desensitizing your immune system to the allergen you’re sensitive to. It takes between three and five years to complete, and you will notice gradual improvement in symptoms over that time.
You can combine allergy immunotherapy with other asthma treatments for the best results. Many patients benefit from medications such as bronchodilators, which open the airways and help clear mucus from the lungs, and steroids, which reduce inflammation and relax the smooth muscle in the lower airways.
Most asthma medications are taken with an inhaler, which delivers a metered dose as a spray, allowing you to breathe it straight into your lungs. You should still carry an inhaler, even after immunotherapy.
Schedule Your Treatment Consultation
If you believe your asthma flares up in response to allergens, we recommend scheduling an allergy test to identify the specific substances causing your symptoms. Once we know what allergens are behind your symptoms, we can determine if immunotherapy is the right treatment approach.
Contact Hampton Roads ENT ~ Allergy to schedule your allergy test today.
Sources
Cleveland Clinic. (2024, February 7). Allergic asthma: Causes, symptoms, tests & treatment. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21461-allergic-asthma