| | June 20189contact with the body. A substance that causes an allergic reaction is called an allergen. Commonly encountered al-lergens are pet dander, pollen grains, dust mites, moulds, insect venom and food products.The allergy occurs only in `sus-ceptible individuals' and can man-ifest in the form of asthma, rhinitis (a runny nose), conjunctivitis (red & itchy eye), itchy skin lesions and life-threatening anaphylaxis leading to a sudden obstruction of airway requiring urgent medical care. Glob-ally, about 300 million people suffer from asthma and about 200-250 mil-lion people suffer from food allergies. One-tenth of the population suffers from drug allergies and 400 million from rhinitis.In India, nearly 20-30 percent of the population suffers from some form of allergy in their lifetime. The incidence of asthma during monsoons is known to increase due to a higher concentration of mould spores in the environment. Evidence also suggests that the incidence of allergic rhinitis & atopic dermatitis (skin allergy) also increases after rains.Symptoms like sneezing, run-ning or blocked nose with or without wheeze and breathlessness have a drastic impact on social & profession-al life as the individual fails to cope-up with day-to-day activities and quality of work is reduced. The complexity & disease burden of allergy warrants an integrated approach to diagnosis & treatment and greater awareness of the disease amongst family physi-cians, specialists, patients, as well as the community in general.The management of allergy starts with identifying the allergen which can be done by skin-prick tests and certain Blood tests, which measure the Serum-Specific Immunoglob-ulin E, a marker for allergy. Once the allergen is identified, preventive guidelines form the backbone of allergy management.Categorical Preventive Guidelines for AllergyA) House Dust MitesThese are microscopic insects which breed in household dust and are one of the biggest causes of allergies worldwide and flourish at 16-24° C. Washing clothes at higher tempera-tures can tackle this problem.· Consider using plastic covered occlusive mattress & bedding covers (this acts as a barrier to dust mites and their droppings)· Choose tiled or hard floor coverings instead of carpet· Clean cushions, soft toys, curtains & upholstered furniture regularly ei-ther by washing or vacuuming themDr. Saud Ahmed
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