Relief from summer allergies

By Patricia Nugent

The allergy forecast for Ohio this month is nasal congestion with a chance of itchy eyes, coughing and sneezing.

“We are experiencing a collision of allergy seasons right now, the end of tree pollen overlapping with the beginning of grass pollen seasons,” says allergy specialist Dr. Barry Lampl, founder of Allergy Diagnostics.

And where you live has a definite impact on how severely allergies will affect you. The report on that? Not so good.

Ohio ranks number nine on a top 10 list of the worst states in the country for allergies, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.

“Many of my patients are suffering from hay fever,” he says. “This is basically caused by an overreaction of the immune system to allergy triggers, which causes inflammation of the nasal passages.”

Although there are over-the-counter medications for allergies, he reports, they often bring on undesirable side effects and aren’t very effective.

“Here’s the biggest problem with treating the symptoms rather than addressing the root cause: Allergies tend to worsen over time,” he says.

“And as they worsen, they develop into more severe conditions such as asthma and sleep apnea.”

To pinpoint the specific allergy triggers unique to each patient, through a skin test, drops of various allergens are placed on the skin.

Then through immunotherapy, a trace amount of the allergen the patient reacted to is administered to him or her via tiny injections. Dr. Lampl has been successful in retraining the immune system to not overreact to foreign substances.

“In most cases, after a series of weekly shots, patients are on the road to relief,” he says.

Allergy Diagnostics has locations in Fairlawn, Mentor, Strongsville, Beachwood, Westlake and Parma. They welcome patients ages six and up. Call 330-836-9232 to make an appointment, or visit AllergyDiagnostics.com to find out more.