Information about Eye Allergies

Eye allergies are common among Americans. Allergic reactions involving eyes are a common complaint among Americans. Severe eye allergies can be an extremely irritating experience requiring consultations with a qualified medical practitioner. If not taken care of in time, it may even pose a serious threat to the victim's eyesight.

The most common reaction in eye allergies involve the conjunctiva, a clear layer of skin overlying the eyes, and is known as allergic conjunctivitis. Allergic conjunctivitis is divided into several major subtypes, the most common among them being seasonal allergic conjunctivitis (SAC) and perennial allergic conjunctivitis (PAC). Both arise out of an immune reaction involving a sensitized individual and an allergen. Put simply, if you are allergic to a particular substance and then come into contact with it, you experience an allergic reaction such as itching or sneezing.

Common allergens, i.e., substances that trigger eye allergies include pollen, grass, weeds, dust, and pet dander. As their names suggest, problems do not last long in SAC, but lasts throughout the year in PAC.

Apart from the all-too-familiar symptom of itching, other symptoms of eye allergies include redness, tearing, burning sensation, blurred vision, and mattering and/or mucus production

If you have eye allergies but can identify and avoid whatever you are allergic to, your allergy should improve markedly. If you fail to identify or avoid the allergens, it is wise to consult an allergist or ophthalmologist to get it treated. In the case of SAC, you may consult your allergist or ophthalmologist before the season in which you suffer from eye allergies so that treatment can start before the symptoms appear. However, if you have PAC, routine appointments with your allergist or ophthalmologist may be helpful to monitor your eye allergies.

In most cases, your allergist or ophthalmologist can diagnose eye allergies from your complaints alone.

As part of the examination, your eyes are examined to help rule out other problems. The front of your eyes is examined using a special microscope. Using the microscope, called a slit lamp, the ophthalmologist checks your eyes for dilated blood vessels, conjunctival swelling, and eyelid swelling, all of which indicate an allergic reaction. In rare and most severe cases, scraping of the conjunctiva is performed to check for eosinophils.

For treatment of eye allergies, avoidance of the allergens is the best method. When you can identify and avoid the particular allergy-causing substance, your symptoms are likely to improve dramatically. But if the problem remains even after avoidance and other forms of self-care, medical treatment is called for. Numerous over-the-counter medications, such as allergy eye drops and oral antihistamines can be used as directed for mild eye allergies. In addition, many prescription eye drops are also available to help reduce your eye allergies.

Can you recognize allergy in your dog?

Animals are in many ways just like humans. Like humans they to can suffer from allergies. Unlike humans, however, they cannot express their suffering and we need to be able to recognize the signs of illness in the dog. Recognizing allergy in your dog may be a daunting task for the inexperienced but with a little practice it can be done quite well.

What are the signs of allergy in your dog?

You will find that the symptoms of allergy in your dog are very similar to those you have when you have an allergy, i.e. heavy itchy skin, sneezing, heavy breathing with wheezing sound, lethargy, vomiting and diarrhea, runny nose, etc. Observe your dog well when it develops any of these symptoms for seemingly no apparent reason. In case you have a feeling that your dog might be suffering from allergy, then rush it to the vet who will prescribe the required medicines.

There are certain tests which will be able to confirm the existence of allergy in your dog. Hence, the best thing to do if you have any doubt regarding allergy in your pet is to immediately rush it to the vet. Do not wait for the allergy to abate by itself. Sometimes, what seems to be an allergy in your dog could be something much more serious.

A word of advice here: do not attempt to self medicate your dog with over the counter medicines. You will not know the right dosage, even if you stumble upon the right medicine and thereby you will further endanger your dog by making adding complications to its already existing woes. Sometimes, even allergy can be very damaging in their reaction, as well.

What types of allergy are known to affect dogs?

The determination of what causes the allergy, if there in an allergy in your dog, is imperative and most important to the cure. Whether it is caused by fleas, or by certain foods, or any other element in its environment, unless it is identified, the allergy cannot be treated. As in humans, dog can be allergic to certain food items as well as insects such as ticks, fleas and even lice.

If and when the dog has been identified to have an allergy the vet will be able to prescribe a regimen of medicines complemented by the removal of the allergen so the dog can live comfortably in spite of the allergy. It is always good to take the advice of the vet and not attempt to medicate the pet yourself, lest you will add to its woes rather than help it.