Sneezing, tears, red eyes, runny nose, cough, difficulty breathing. This is the hardest season of the year for those who are allergic to pollen, because cypresses, mimosas, olive trees, parietarias, grasses release their pollen in large quantities. An increasingly widespread problem, also because the flowering periods are getting longer visibly.
To prevent
«With specific tests it is possible to identify which allergens cause the symptoms and consulting the pollen calendars it is possible to obtain flowering forecasts and indications on the concentration of pollen. So you can plan with your pediatrician a preventive antihistamine therapy, which prevents the breathed pollen from inflaming the mucous membranes. These treatments will then have to continue throughout the exhibition season ", he explains Alexander , Head of Allergy at the Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital in the city.
Treating
Antihistamines can be given to children both to prevent allergic reactions and to the occurrence of coughing, sneezing and other symptoms of asthma, rhinitis and conjunctivitis, easy to recognize according to the instructions of the pediatrician. They're available in tablets, syrups, and in the form of nasal sprays and eye drops to be applied locally. "For a couple of years, therapy has been made more agile by a new long-acting second-generation antihistamine, the rupatadina: just take one tablet a day ».
Read also: Asthma of allergic origin
Effetti collaterali
“The new antihistamines are more effective and the side effects, in terms of dry mouth, sleepiness and increased appetite, are significantly reduced. In any case, if the child shows poor tolerability, he can change the antihistamine, ”the allergist points out. «Also, given that some antihistamines can cause alterations in the rhythm and heart rate, for i children with heart disease it is advisable to use chromones: other antiallergic drugs, in the form of sprays or aerosols, to be administered three to four times a day ».
The vaccines. Here's why to do them
The real weapon to win the war against allergies is thespecific immunotherapy: in other words, vaccines that train the immune system to better tolerate pollen. "A vaccination cycle lasts three years," he says. «The ideal is to start it before the pollen season, but those who have not already done so can do it now and immediately draw some benefits».
I allergy vaccines they are available for oral or subcutaneous administration: sublingual ones are generally preferred, because they are painless and to be managed at home. In fact, these are drops to be taken daily, or tablets, in the case of vaccines with allergenic extracts of grasses. Injections, on the other hand, must be done by the doctor. One a week in the first month, then they thin out: one every fifteen days in the following three months to continue with one a month.
"To keep in mind - concludes the expert - that in the hours immediately following the puncture it is not recommended to play sports".
Updated on 19.03.2022
TAG:- allergies children
- vaccinations for children
- 1-2 children years
