Allergic rhinitis (hay fever)

All­er­gic rhi­ni­tis is an all­er­gic inflamm­a­ti­on of the nasal muco­sa trig­ge­red by pol­len, house dust mites, ani­mal dan­der or moulds. It is one of the most com­mon all­er­gic con­di­ti­ons and often beg­ins in child­hood or adolescence.

Cau­ses

The immu­ne sys­tem forms anti­bo­dies against pro­te­ins that are actual­ly harm­less. On rene­wed cont­act, mast cells release hist­ami­ne, which cau­ses the typi­cal sym­ptoms. Sea­so­nal forms are cau­sed by tree, grass and weed pol­len, year-round forms main­ly by mites and ani­mal allergens.

Sym­ptoms

Cha­rac­te­ristic are bouts of snee­zing, a watery run­ny nose, a blo­cked nose and itchy, wate­ring eyes. Many pati­ents feel tired and find it har­der to con­cen­tra­te. If unt­rea­ted, the aller­gy can extend to the bron­chi and all­er­gic asth­ma may develop.

Tre­at­ment

After aller­gy test­ing, avo­i­ding the trig­gers comes first as far as pos­si­ble. Sym­ptoms can be con­trol­led well with anti­hist­ami­nes and cor­ti­cos­te­ro­id nasal sprays. Spe­ci­fic immu­no­the­ra­py acts on the cau­se by accus­to­ming the body to the all­er­gen over seve­ral years; it also redu­ces the risk of deve­lo­ping asth­ma later.

Rela­ted tre­at­ment at Swiss Der­ma Cli­nic: Cont­act all­er­gies & hay fever