Causes, symptoms and treatments for each allergy

For pets, feces is more important than fur.

Certain proteins in dandruff or urine cause allergies.

These days, there are many people with allergies caused by pets, right?

Many mammalian allergens are contained in saliva, urine, feces, hair, and dander. Allergies are caused by specific proteins in animal dander or urine, rather than the animal fur itself. Among pets, cats are known to be the highest risk factor for worsening allergic asthma.

Is there a way to reduce exposure to animal allergens?

Pets should be kept out of the living room or the allergy sufferer’s room. We also recommend bathing your pet at least twice a week. A family member other than the allergy sufferer must give the baby a bath. The rest is a lifestyle change that reduces your exposure to dust mites.

How should we deal with air pollutants such as fine dust?

Ozone, nitrogen oxides, and dust in air pollutants are known to cause allergic asthma symptoms. Symptoms may worsen if it is cold or dry, so you should avoid going out on days with bad air in winter. Asthma patients are advised to carry an inhaled, short-acting bronchodilator with them when going out in case of an asthma attack. Severe allergy sufferers may want to consider moving their residence for a while if air pollution persists.

Why does chronic cough occur and how is it treated?

In adults, if a cough lasts for more than 8 weeks, it is called chronic cough. Acute cough that occurred less than 3 weeks ago is mainly caused by an upper respiratory viral infection and often resolves on its own, but cough that persists for more than 8 weeks rarely improves spontaneously. This chronic cough is closely related to asthma, rhinitis, sinusitis, and gastroesophageal reflux disease, so it is important to find the related disease and treat it appropriately.

Asthma occurs most often in children under the age of 10 and in the elderly, but it also occurs in people in their 20s to 40s. What are the characteristics of ‘young asthma’?

80% of young people have allergic asthma, which is caused by allergens such as dust mites or pollen. On the other hand, half of the elderly have allergic and non-allergic asthma. As we age, our immune system changes, lung elasticity decreases, and it is thought that non-allergic asthma often occurs due to cumulative irritation of the airways, such as smoking.

Allergies that require immediate medical attention

Acute asthma attacks and anaphylaxis are life-threatening

Are there any allergic diseases that require you to go to the hospital right away?

Risks include acute asthma attack, anaphylaxis (hypersensitivity allergic reaction), and severe adverse skin drug reactions. Acute severe asthma occurs when a patient who has neglected treatment is suddenly exposed to a large amount of allergens, or when an asthma patient with a drug allergy unexpectedly takes the drug. Severe adverse skin drug reactions are symptoms accompanied by skin rash or peeling (skin peeling), high fever, increased eosinophils, and worsening liver function after taking the drug. If not treated properly, these can be very rare but fatal.

Why does anaphylaxis occur and which cases are particularly dangerous?

Anaphylaxis is a disease that causes a specific immune response to a very small amount of allergen, resulting in severe allergies throughout the body within a few minutes. Difficulty breathing, severe dizziness and shock, nausea and vomiting due to low blood pressure, skin hives, and angioedema may occur. In particular, if severe angioedema occurs in the larynx, especially around the uvula, it can block the airway and result in suffocation.

If you experience difficulty swallowing or a feeling of tightness in your throat, you should be especially careful. There are many causes, including food, exercise, drugs, and bee stings.

What should I do if anaphylaxis occurs?

When acute symptoms occur, it is important to take emergency measures to raise blood pressure and secure the airway. While oxygen is supplied, epinephrine (adrenaline hormone), steroids, and antihistamines are administered. The most important thing is to know exactly what is causing your symptoms and avoid it in your daily life. If you are a patient at high risk for anaphylaxis, it is helpful to keep a note of your symptoms and causes with you. This will prevent you from being prescribed the causative medication at the hospital. Also, if you lose consciousness and collapse, people around you can help you guess the cause and administer appropriate first aid. If you are at risk of being exposed to anaphylaxis through your work, such as a beekeeper, it is advisable to carry an epinephrine auto-injector that can immediately increase your blood pressure and use it in an emergency situation.

Latest treatments are coming out

Attention should be paid to immunotherapy and biological agents, treatment must be continued

How is immunotherapy, which is receiving attention as a fundamental treatment method, implemented?

Immunotherapy is a treatment that reduces hypersensitivity to allergens and improves symptoms by administering small amounts of the causative allergen to allergic patients in gradually increasing doses. However, immunotherapy is not possible for all allergic diseases. For allergic rhinitis, immunotherapy is considered when symptoms are not well controlled with medication. Immunotherapy may also be useful for patients with allergic rhinitis accompanied by asthma, but immunotherapy is not recommended for patients with severe asthma. Immunotherapy is the only treatment that can change the natural course of allergic disease, but it requires long-term treatment and is not effective for all patients, so an allergist with experience in immunotherapy must determine the treatment target and perform the treatment.

What are the most popular biological agents and how are they used?

Biological agents are treatments that suppress the development of allergies by artificially creating antibodies and allowing these antibodies to bind to the antibodies that cause allergies. There are many patients in whom the treatment effect is dramatic. For example, there are cases where a patient who had been taking oral steroids almost every day for several years and was experiencing severe side effects improved enough to stop taking steroids after using biological agents. Research results have also shown that 40-50% of patients with severe asthma can improve to the point where their daily lives are not affected. However, it is unfortunate that many patients do not receive benefits because the drug is expensive and the scope of national health insurance coverage is not yet wide.

What would you especially like to emphasize to allergy sufferers?

Currently, there is no cure for allergic diseases, and like diabetes and high blood pressure, the primary goal is to control them and lead a normal life. Allergy treatment is like a marathon, so it is best to trust your doctor and think of him as a pacemaker who runs with you. Recently, many patients have benefited from the development of many medications with fewer side effects, so it is important to abandon preconceptions about treatments and receive treatment consistently.

Editor: Gongpil Kim (Reporter, Health Contents Group) | Photo: Getty Image Bank