Common Allergies and Allergy Treatment

 

What is an Allergy?

When our body reacts to a (usually) harmless substance that it views as a harmful invader, that reaction is called An Allergy.

More than 50 million Americans suffer from seasonal or other types of allergies each year. Allergies are a leading cause of chronic illnesses and children are at higher risk targets of getting affected by allergies. Also, the odds increase for kids with one or both allergic parents to develop some kind of allergy.

We at Southwest Urgent Care can help you Diagnose, Treat, and Manage your common allergy symptoms most proficiently.

 

Urgent Care for Common Allergies

Here is a three-step guide followed under urgent care for common allergies.

Step I: Diagnose your Allergy

Correct diagnosis is the first step to effective disease management. Try to comprehend what type of allergy you might be suffering from. It may vary from seasonal to environmental or, in some cases, both or even more types of allergies.

Step II: Provide Treatment

Allergy symptoms can be very uncomfortable and or painful and it’s extremely important to treat them at your earliest.

Our providers at Southwest Urgent Care are capable of providing immediate treatment to relieve you from your allergy symptoms, 7 days a week.

Step III: Create a Treatment Plan For Allergy Relief

After urgent care, a treatment plan is a necessary step to ensure long-term relief from your allergy symptoms and suffering.

It has a few steps:

• Addressing the identified problem in the patient.
• Assessment- treatment options.
• Defining and measuring interventions in care to provide treatment progress.
• Highlight possible side effects.
• Deciding on the expected length of treatment.

 

Allergy Symptoms

Our immune systems’ reactions to certain substances that cause reactions are called allergens (usually benign substances like pollen or dust), and the way your body responds to the allergen is called an allergic reaction.

Allergy symptoms may range from mild to anaphylaxis or life-threatening. The most common symptoms of allergies are:

• Hives (Rashy, red, or raised skin)
• Ocular Pruritis (itchy, watery, red eyes)
• Runny or stuffy nose
• Sore throat
• Pain or tenderness around your cheeks, eyes, or forehead
• Swollen lips, tongue, face, or eyes
• Wheezing or chest tightness, shortness of breath
• Cough
• Fever
• Headache
• Stomach pain/ cramps
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea

It’s suggested never to ignore even a minor symptom.

If you experience any of the above-mentioned symptoms, seek immediate medical attention as it might get worse over time, at times even in a few minutes or an hour.

Call our highly reliable Virtual providers or visit us as you may need immediate treatment in the Urgent Care facility.

Note: In case you feel like losing consciousness or having difficulty in breathing, call 911.

 

Common Allergies and Types of Allergies

Allergies are abnormal immune system reactions to allergens. Sometimes an external substance comes in contact with your body and triggers an overreaction to substances you may find insignificant and harmless to most people.

There are many types of common allergies. Some of them are listed and explained below:

• Food allergies
• Environmental allergies
• Drug allergies
• Insect bites

 

Food Allergens

Certain foods can trigger an allergic reaction or other symptoms. A specific and reproducible immune response, an uncomfortable, severe, or mild reaction that occurs soon after eating a certain food protein, is called a food allergy.

Food allergies may cause severe life-threatening anaphylaxis!

Any food item may be a reason to cause allergy in individuals, but the most common food allergens are:

• Egg
• Fish
• Milk
• Peanuts
• Sesame
• Soybean
• Wheat
• Fish (bass, flounder, and cod)
• Shellfish (crab, crayfish, lobster, and shrimp)
• Tree nuts (almonds, walnuts, and pecans)

Do you think you are allergic to one or more of these foods? Are you searching for effective, reliable treatment and relief for your allergic symptoms?

Book your appointment with our medical provider today or visit Southwest Urgent Care to get diagnostic testing and treatment for your possible Food allergens.

 

Environmental Allergens

When our body reacts to benign substances in our surroundings or everyday environment, environmental allergies are caused.

It takes time for our body to develop allergies to substances present in the environment, depending on if the allergen cause is present all year round or for a shorter period of a few months. Often, the risk of developing allergies is inherited from our parent(s).

Common environmental allergies include:

Pollen:

Present in our outdoors, Pollen, which is released into the air by trees, grasses, and weeds, is likely to cause classic nasal symptoms of environmental allergies.

Cigarette smoke:

Cigarettes, pipes, cigars, and shisha /hookah pipes; any type of smoke irritating to the respiratory symptoms may cause allergies.

You don’t have to be a smoker yourself! Passive smoking is not just unpleasant but equally dangerous and might cause allergies with other health issues too.

Dust mites:

These tiny bugs, barely visible to the naked eye, are smaller than 1 mm. They flourish in humid areas indoors and live in furniture and are one of the most common allergens that can be present throughout the year.

Mold:

This dust-like substance is formed by fungi. Humid and damp environments cause mold spores to grow rapidly.

Mold is found both indoors and outdoors and can cause severe allergic reactions.

Pet dander:

Animals with fur shed tiny bits of microscopic flecks of skin and hair, which remain suspended in the air for a very long period, triggering an allergic reaction in some people.

It is quite not possible to have a smooth lifestyle if you suffer from any type of environmental allergy, as it’s impossible to avoid our regular environment.

Treating the symptoms timely can promise a better lifestyle. So why wait?

Contact our helpful staff to get you connected to a medical provider here at Southwest Urgent Care and get a treatment plan today.

 

Allergies To Drugs

A drug allergy occurs when certain medications cause an abnormal allergic reaction or side effects in some people.

Our immune system rejects a medication and sends negative signals that cause chain reactions trying to defend itself, resulting in allergies.

Any medication category can cause an allergic reaction.

• Over-the-counter
• Prescription
• Dietary supplements.

Triggered symptoms may vary from mild to severe anaphylaxis. Some medicines that are more likely to cause allergic reactions are:

• Penicillin
• Sulfa drugs -Antibiotics containing Sulphonamides
• Anti-seizure drugs-Anticonvulsants
• Aspirin, ibuprofen, and other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)
• Chemotherapy drugs

Note: Beware! Any or all medications have the potential to cause side effects.

Whether allergic or not, reactions to medications can range from mild to life-threatening. If you have had an allergic reaction to a medication in the past, it is essential to tell your doctor at every visit.

 

Insect Bite Allergies

Insect bites and stings can cause allergic reactions and may require immediate treatment.

The bites from the mentioned insects are very painful:

• Bees
• Wasps
• Fine ants
• Hornets

Some less painful would be:

• Mosquitos
• Bedbugs
• Fleas and Flies

You could be having a serious allergic reaction if your mouth, face, lips, tongue, or throat start swelling and may need immediate treatment in the hospital. Call 911 or get to the nearest Urgent Care!

 

Seasonal Allergies & Types

Different Seasons may bring different sets of Allergens to our surroundings. We can divide it into 3 main seasonal categories:

• Winter Allergies
• Fall & Spring Allergies
• Summer Allergies

 

Winter Allergies

No matter how much we love winters to enjoy indoors with hot chocolate and cozy reading corners, Cold weather and dry air can intensify respiratory allergy symptoms.

Common triggers for Chilly allergens months can be:

• Pet danders
• Dust mites
• Mildew mold or fungus
• Dryness in the air
• Insect droppings

 

Fall & Spring Allergies

When certain plants pollinate in the spring and fall, a wide variety of allergic symptoms are caused.

Ragweed is the biggest allergy trigger in the fall. Upper respiratory desires are common in this season.

People allergic to pollen from plants can have similar fall and spring allergy symptoms. Such as:

• Coughing
• Sneezing
• Wheezing
• Watery or Itchy eyes

Suffering from these symptoms can be very unpleasant. Schedule a consultation with our certified physician and get your treatment plan now!

 

Summer Allergies

From June to September, summer allergy symptoms affect and disturb so many. But we can’t let allergies ruin our summertime fun!

Southwest Urgent Care has a plan to fix our summer allergies worries.

Contact with certain plants like poison ivy, pollen from trees, grass, weeds, or other plants is the most common cause of allergic reactions in summers as we tend to spend more time outdoors. Allergy to Some raw fruits, vegetables, and tree nuts related to this weather, called cross-reacting allergens, are also common. Some troubling plant pollens are:

• Ragweed
• Sagebrush
• Pigweed
• Tumbleweed
• Lamb’s quarter
• Kentucky blue
• Rye
• Timothy and more

Ask your provider for Seasonal Allergy treatments. Pay attention to your symptoms, and keep enjoying all seasons with your family!

 

Allergy Treatment Options

Diagnosis is the first step to a successful treatment plan. The proper diagnosis led to proper treatment!

Different Allergies can be diagnosed by analyzing and evaluating your symptoms with the help of diagnostic tests. Your provider may decide the process of diagnosing allergens depending on your medical history.

An allergist can help with tests like skin prick or a puncture or scratch test, which checks for immediate allergic reactions to as many as 50 different substances at once. We ensure that results are reported promptly for quick actions.

Once your provider is satisfied with the diagnosis of the underlying cause of your Allergy, treatment for your allergic reaction starts. Some of the several allergy treatment options available include:

 

Medicine

The most commonly used medications for allergies are:

Antihistamines; over-the-counter and prescription-based

• Anti-leukotrienes
• Nasal steroids, corticosteroids
• Nasal antihistamines
• Nasal cromolyn
• Decongestants

Nebulizer or Inhaler

Nebulizers and inhalers turn liquid medicine into a mist to be breathed into the lungs directly, providing fast relief.

Kids, especially, are treated with these tools as it is difficult to lure them to take oral medicines. Also, asthma medicines are usually in liquid form.

Emergency Epinephrine

An injection of epinephrine (Epi-Pen) provided at Southwest Urgent Care is the best option either for immediate use or to carry with you to treat severe allergic reactions and aphylactic reactions!

Immunotherapy-Shots

It is a preventive treatment for different types of common allergies. This process involves prescribing slowly increasing doses of a constituent, or allergen, to which the person is allergic. Such shots, when reacted to allergens can help your immune system desensitize or soothe the trigger in a span of 3 to 5 years.

 

Other Conditions Treated at Southwest Urgent Care

At Southwest Urgent Care, we can help you diagnose and treat seasonal or acute allergies.

Also, other related conditions addressed at Southwest Urgent Care are:

• Mild asthma attacks & asthma symptoms
• Rashes or skin infections
• Wheezing
• Eczema
• Minor animal or insect bites/stings

Whatever the cause, allergies can make you feel miserable. To enjoy a healthy lifestyle, it is important to get treated. We here at Southwest Urgent Care can help you reach your goal by providing a treatment plan best suited to your needs.