Allergies

What are the most common allergy triggers?

Some of the most common allergy triggers are:

• Dust mites
• Mold
• Pollen
• Animal dander
• Cockroaches
• Food allergies
• Latex
• Insect sting
• Medications
• Food additives

Allergies can cause problems with your breathing and lead to sleep apnea and snoring. Sleep apnea heightens your risk for diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease.

What types of allergy testing are available?

Brandon Riverview Medical Associates utilizes allergy testing to identify the allergens that are causing your reactions. Allergy testing can accurately assess the severity of those reactions.

There are different types of allergy testing, including asthma and breathing tests and pulmonary function tests to evaluate your lung functioning.

If you have more sensitive skin, you might not be suitable for an allergy skin test.

Blood test

A blood test measures the presence of antibodies in your blood.

Skin test

Two skin testing methods are available. With the pricking method, your provider applies allergen extracts to your skin and lightly pricks your skin to allow a gentle exposure to the allergen.

With intradermal skin testing, your provider carefully injects a minor amount of the allergen into the outer layer of your skin. This prompts a reaction that your provider can safely monitor and evaluate.

Food elimination test

A food elimination test is an excellent way for you to control what you eat and to help identify the foods that are allergy triggers. With a food elimination test, you keep a food diary and eliminate certain foods from your diet.

Throughout the food elimination testing process, you detail your reactions and symptoms during a certain time period after you consume specific foods.

Medications

Medications are usually designed to block histamine receptors, lower inflammation, and prevent allergic reactions.

What is immunotherapy?

With allergy immunotherapy, you undergo a series of injections containing small doses of certain allergens. Small doses of allergens are administered over time.

The dosage is steadily increased during the initial phase of treatment while your body begins to develop a tolerance to the allergens, a process that reduces your reactions.

The next phase of allergy immunotherapy treatment is the maintenance phase, where the same dosage is steadily maintained and more time is added in between your treatments to finalize your immunotherapy.

Immunotherapy effectively desensitizes you to the allergens over time through repeated exposure to them in small doses.

Since it can be hard to avoid certain environmental triggers, immunotherapy offers you relief by targeting specific allergies at the source and ensuring that even if you’re exposed, you experience few to no symptoms.

Book online or call Brandon Riverview Medical Associates today to combat your allergies.