Whether they flare up at a specific time of year, happen when you eat certain foods or are exposed to the wrong animal dander or environmental particle, allergies affect millions of people of all ages. Over 100 million children and adults deal with some form of allergy, and depending on the cause, they can lead to feeling miserable all year round.
Over 24 million people struggle with asthma, which often results from allergic responses. Since May is National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month, we should try to better understand the link between the two illnesses. We need to look at both problems and their causes and find out the best ways to treat them.
If you live in the Kissimmee or Orlando, Florida, area and are dealing with the discomfort of allergies and asthma, Drs. Wade Han, Elvira Livigni De Armas, and their team at the Florida Ear Nose Throat & Facial Plastic Surgery Center are here to assist you.
When your body is exposed to a virus, bacteria, or other dangerous substance that can lead to illness, your immune system is a network of different organs, chemicals, and tissue that destroys the threat and prevents it from harming you. Allergic reactions are a misinterpretation of this function, which responds to specific and harmless particles called allergens.
When these are exposed to the body, antibodies attack the substance, leading to typical reactions like upper respiratory problems (runny or stuffy nose, sneezing, coughing), swelling, rashes (hives), itching, and watery eyes.
This problem affects your breathing by causing either constriction of muscles (bronchospasm), inflammation, or mucus production in your lungs, leading to an asthma attack. These attacks can be intermittent (happening periodically) or chronic (flare-ups that happen regularly) and can start during childhood in kids younger than five or not occur until 18 or older.
Asthma can be caused by allergies when exposed to substances your body adversely responds to, but it can also be triggered by issues entirely unrelated to this reaction, like illness, stress, exercise, and weather changes.
Skin and blood tests can identify your specific allergies, but we offer several different solutions for treating them, such as corticosteroids, decongestants, antihistamines, and tips for avoiding the allergens that lead to attacks. Immunotherapy, which involves allergy shots and sublingual tablets, is also an option.
Asthma can be controlled through a combination of inhalers (which can contain bronchodilators or anti-inflammatory medicines), oral medications, or biological therapies.
Both allergies and asthma can make even routine activities more difficult, but we can help you get both under control regardless of the cause. To get help for these problems, make an appointment with Drs. Han, Livigni de Armas, and the staff at Florida Ear Nose Throat & Facial Plastic Surgery Center.
