Allergy Sufferers Face Long Season In Pittsburgh
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Spring time is usually when the trees start to bud followed by a runny nose, an itchy throat and itchy eyes.
All of these symptoms set in earlier this year due to the mild winter.
"We had an early onset to the season and the duration should stay the same, so it's going to be probably the longest tree pollen season that we've ever have had in Pittsburgh," Dr. David Skoner, an allergist, said.
And many are finding out that those meds that used to work for the whole allergy season are letting us down.
"Sometimes medication does lose the effectiveness and we're not sure why," he said.
"Frankly, sometimes the reactions on the nasal lining or in the eyes are so strong because there's been so much allergen exposure that all the drugs in the world won't be able to cut through that inflammation."
When this happens, Dr. Skoner suggests perhaps moving away from over the counter drugs to ones prescribed by a doctor.
"The most effective therapy that we have involves sprays," he said.
Those sprays are for the nasal cavity, but if you prefer to forgo drugs, there are some things you can do as well.
"You can keep all your windows closed to prevent pollen from coming in," he said. "You can run air conditioning which filters pollen pretty well and perhaps washing very well might help reduce some of our exposure to pollen."
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