Nightmare on Allergy Street?

With Halloween rapidly approaching, do you have more than ghosts and ghouls and things that groan in the night to worry about?  If you suffer from seasonal allergies then your answer is almost certainly yes.

Seasonal allergies occur when outdoor allergens such as mold spores, tree, grass and weed pollen are inhaled and cause an allergic reaction.

This year allergy sufferers were subjected to the “perfect storm” of a mild winter, including an unseasonably warm February, and an early spring caused trees to pollinate earlier than normal.

“This has been a very strange year for allergies,” says Dr. David Chudwin, an allergist from Crystal Lake, IL. “It’s been the strangest year in the 30 years that I’ve been practicing.”

The early spring was followed by a hot dry summer that kept pollen counts high, day after day.  Then in late summer and early autumn, record-breaking mold counts resulted in county wide air-quality alerts that resulted in even mild allergy sufferers dreading the outdoors.  Although mold is typically associated with dampness, mold spores also are associated with dying vegetation.

Many molds grow on rotting logs and fallen leaves, in compost piles and on grasses and grains. Unlike pollens, molds do not die with the first killing frost. And mold counts can change quickly, depending on the weather. Certain spore types reach peak levels in dry, breezy weather. Some need high humidity, fog or dew to release spores. This group is abundant at night and during rainy periods.

To makes things worse, retreating indoors may not be the answer. For, those bothered by indoor, as well as outdoor, allergens, the season of suffering is just beginning.  As we start to run furnaces and our pets elect to curl up in front of the fire, dust and dander levels start to rise.

According to most of the country’s leading expert on allergies, more Americans than ever are sneezing, sniffling and itching. The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, estimates 450 million Americans suffer from allergies.

As previously reported by SRxA’s Word on Health, our squeaky clean lifestyle is probably to blame for the rising numbers.  According to the hygiene hypothesis – Children that lead too clean a life are not exposed to enough germs to properly adjust their immune system.

“People who are less prone to allergies include children from large families, children who live on farms, children in underdeveloped countries,” Chudwin said.

If you don’t fall into any of these categories, we suggest a trip to your local allergist, who can help prepare you for sneeze-free trick-or-treating and the other joys of fall and winter.

Survey Reveals Unmet Needs Among Patients with Allergic Rhinitis

SRxA’s Word on Health team spent the last week attending the American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology Annual Meeting in San Francisco. In addition to spending quality time with many of our KOL Allergy Advisors and pharmaceutical clients, we were able to catch up with some of the latest research on allergic rhinitis (AR).

Allergic rhinitis is an allergic reaction that happens when the immune system overreacts to inhaled, such as pollen. This causes release of a type of antibody, known as IgE, into the nasal passages, along with inflammatory chemicals such as histamines. The two types of allergic rhinitis are seasonal allergic rhinitis (hay fever) and perennial allergic rhinitis, which occurs year-round. Hay fever is caused by outdoor allergens. Perennial allergic rhinitis is caused by indoor allergens such as dust mites, pet dander, and mold.

Results from a recent pivotal AR satisfaction survey assessing patient and healthcare provider perspectives on AR reveal that symptoms like nasal congestion and post-nasal drip continue to impact patients’ daily activities.

Findings from the Nasal Allergy Survey Assessing Limitations (NASL) 2010, highlight the continued unmet need for more effective treatment options to help reduce symptoms and overall disease burden of AR.

The prevalence of AR in the U.S. has increased during the past three decades.  It is now estimated that 20% of the general adult population and almost 40% of children have the condition.  Of the estimated 60 million Americans affected with AR, approximately 20% have seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR), 40% have perennial allergic rhinitis (PAR), and 40% have a combination of the two (i.e., PAR with seasonal exacerbations) depending on the allergen sensitivity.

In other words, one in 5 adults and almost half of children suffer from symptoms including:

• Stuffy, runny nose
• Sneezing
• Post-nasal drip
• Red, itchy, and watery eyes
• Swollen eyelids
• Itchy mouth, throat, ears, and face
• Sore throat
• Dry cough
• Headaches, facial pain or pressure
• Partial loss of hearing, smell, and taste
• Fatigue
• Dark circles under the eyes

According to NASL 2010, nasal congestion, post-nasal drip and repeated sneezing continue to be the most frequently reported nasal allergy symptoms among patients. Beyond physical symptoms, AR patients experience emotional burdens, like feeling tired and miserable. When assessing the impact nasal allergies have on productivity, the survey revealed that patients are less productive when their nasal allergies are at their worst, limiting them from doing well at work.

“It’s clear from the NASL 2010 findings that the estimated 60 million people living with allergic rhinitis in the U.S. are still significantly affected, both physically and emotionally, by symptoms,” said Gary Gross, M.D. FAAAAI, Dallas Allergy & Asthma Center, Dallas, Texas. “This is a continuing trend we’re seeing in patients having allergic rhinitis as these findings are similar to those released in a past survey evaluating disease burden on patients. The NASL survey results further support the need for more effective treatment options that address these specific issues for patients living with allergic rhinitis.”

Nasal allergies can make it difficult for people to take part in both indoor and outdoor activities if their symptoms are not well controlled. According to NASL 2010, less than 20% of surveyed patients felt their nasal allergies were completely controlled over a one week time period. The vast majority of allergists, otolaryngologists and primary care providers interviewed in the survey stated intranasal corticosteroid sprays as their preferred treatment of choice for adults with moderate to severe persistent nasal allergies.

Because of its prevalence and health effects, AR is associated with considerable direct and indirect costs.  Latest estimates suggest that AR alone results in a staggering  $11.2 billion in healthcare costs, 12 million physician office visits, 2 million days of school absences and 3.5 million lost work days per year. In addition, the presence of co-morbidities such as asthma and sinusitis further increase AR-related treatment costs.

Word on Health will be bringing you more from AAAAI in the coming days, including some exciting new treatment options being developed for allergic rhinitis.