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Hay fever sufferers feel brunt of 'burst' |
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Written by Dahleen Glanton, McClatchy-Tribune
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Tuesday, 10 April 2007 |
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At age 6, Javon Thornton is a veteran in the world of allergy sufferers.
For most of his life, spring has been the time of year when his eyes swell, his nose itches and his lungs wheeze. That means he can't go outside for school recess. He misses baseball practice. And he has to follow a strict medical regime of antihistamines, eye drops and nasal spray.
"I dread this season of the year," said his mother, Melishia Carter, 37, of Atlanta. "I tried to be more proactive this year by taking him to the doctor before it started. But it beat me to the punch."
Like more than 35 million Americans, Javon suffers from seasonal allergic rhinitis, better known as hay fever. And this year, according to experts, the pollen that causes it came early and struck with a vengeance.
"About three weeks ago, we experienced a national pollen burst as opposed to a surge," said Dr. Jay Portnoy, an allergist at Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Mo., and a spokesman for the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. "All of a sudden, all the pollen just exploded rather than each species of trees squirting out a little at a time."
While the worst allergy cities shift from region to region each year, the South has captured the title for 2007, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, which recently issued its "Top 100 Allergy Capitals" list. Though Tulsa, Okla., topped the list, nine Southern cities were in the top 20.
The burst of pollen hit the South particularly hard, largely because of unseasonably warm weather late in the winter and a lack of rain. The pollen count in Atlanta recently reached 5,499 particles per cubic meter; generally, a count of 120 is considered high.
According to doctors at the Atlanta Allergy and Asthma Clinic, which has tracked pollen counts for 12 years, it was the fourth-highest count ever recorded. And that's just for tree pollen. Grass pollen isn't expected to make its debut until mid-May.
For the past several weeks, much of the South has been blanketed with a bright yellow powder — pollen from the overly abundant pine trees that sticks to cars, patio furniture and even the hair of people who are outside long enough.
In cities like Atlanta, the pine tree pollen not only signals the beginning of spring — when the region bursts with color from blooming azalea plants and dogwood trees — but also the start of the allergy season. These days, it can take up to six weeks to get an appointment with an allergist.
A couple of days of lower temperatures and rain last week offered a respite, washing the gunk away, at least temporarily, and flushing it down neighborhood streets in the form of a yellow slime.
While many Southerners think the yellow film is what causes them to cough, sneeze and sniffle, experts said it is more likely that the unseen pollen — released from oak, hickory, birch and willow trees during their reproductive cycle — is the main culprit.
"The typical pollen is about 20 to 30 microns in diameter, so small it's beyond human vision," said Dr. David Tanner, allergist at the Atlanta Allergy and Asthma Clinic. "The pine pollen, which is about 100 microns in diameter and visible to the human eye, is guilt by association."
With more than 20 percent of the U.S. population affected by hay fever, Americans make more than 14 million trips to the doctor's office and spend $6 billion a year to keep the malady under control. But whatever people use — from over-the-counter medications to costly injections — there is no cure. The best allergy sufferers can hope for, specialists said, is to relieve the symptoms.
Many severe sufferers, like Javon, end up undergoing an allergy test. On a recent afternoon, the 6-year-old lay shirtless on an examination table while a technician injected about 20 allergens under his skin. He twisted and turned for 15 minutes as his mother held him down to keep him from scratching the blisters that appeared on his back.
As it turned out, Javon is allergic to almost everything from dust mites to ragweed. But his mother decided to put off the doctor's recommendation of expensive immotherapy, which would require a three — to five-year commitment to biweekly injections.
"At first, I thought he is so little to have to go through all this, but he handles it like a champ," said Carter, adding that she starts her day by checking the pollen count. "I try to let him be a kid and do as much as he can, but I know there are consequences."
Allergies affect as many as 40 million to 50 million Americans in varying degrees, depending on environment and heredity, according to doctors. When both parents suffer from allergies, their children have a 75 percent chance of having allergies, according to Asthma and Allergy Foundation. If one parent has allergies, the child has a 50 percent chance.
"Allergies can appear from childhood on," said Dr. Peter Baum, an allergist at the DeKalb Clinic in DeKalb, Ill. "The good news is that people tend to outgrow them as they age." | Only registered users can write comments.
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