Allergies

Introduction: Allergies

An allergy is an over-reaction by the immune system to a particular substance. Although the term is often used to refer to dust allergies or airborne allergies (pollen allergies/hay fever), any possible substance can cause allergic reactions in different people. Thus there are also animal allergies, dust allergies, food allergies (e.g. peanut allergies, shellfish allergies), drug allergies (e.g. penicillin allergy), insect sting allergies, mold allergies, and many others. Allergies causing skin conditions may result in eczema or dermatitis. The effect of an allergy ranges from mild to very severe, and prompt profesional medical advice is required. Many types of allergy are difficult to diagnose and thus may be both over-diagnosed and under-diagnosed at different times.

Symptoms of Allergies

• General symptoms possible from allergies:
  • Allergic dermatitis
  • Itchy rash
  • Eczema
  • Hay fever

See full list of 33 symptoms of Allergies

Home Diagnostic Testing

Home medical testing related to Allergies:

• Home Allergy Tests
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• Home Mold Tests
• Home Food Intolerance Tests
• Home Radon Tests
• Home Lung Function Tests
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Medical Textbooks Online about Allergies

Book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

Wrongly Diagnosed with Allergies?

• Misdiagnosis of Allergies
• Failure to diagnose Allergies
• Underlying causes of Allergies (possibly wrongly diagnosed)
• Failure to diagnose Allergies

Misdiagnosis and Allergies

Chronic lung diseases hard to diagnose: Some of the chronic lung diseases are difficult to diagnose. Even the well-knowns conditions such as asthma or lung cancer often fail to be diagnosed early. Some of the chronic lung diseases with diagnostic difficulties include asthma (perhaps surprisingly), COPD, emphysema, chronic bronchitis, cystic fibrosis, mesothelioma, smoker's cough, AIDS-related respiratory conditions (see AIDS), chronic pneumonia, and other respiratory diseases. Rare possibilities include diseases like psittacosis (bird-related lung infection). See other types of chronic lung diseases....read more »

Read more about Misdiagnosis and Allergies

Causes of Allergies

Read more about causes of Allergies.

More information about causes of Allergies:

• Medications, drugs, or substances causing Allergies (94 listings)
• Allergies as a complication caused by other conditions
• Allergies as a symptom
• Medical news summaries relating to Causes of Allergies

Treatments for Allergies

• Antihistamine drugs
• Hospitalization - for an asthma attack
• Emergency treatment - for a severe asthma attack or anaphylactic shock
• Vitamin B5 - possibly used for related vitamin B5 deficiency

Read more about treatments for Allergies

Videos for Allergies

Patient Surveys for Allergies

• Patient Profile Survey
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• Survey about the symptoms of your Allergies
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Reseach about Allergies

Visit our research pages for current research about Allergies treatments.

Statistics for Allergies

• Medical statistics for Allergies
• Prevalence and incidence statistics for Allergies
• Death and Mortality statistics for Allergies
• Society statistics for Allergies

Types of Allergies

• Hay fever
• Allergic rhinitis
• Airborne allergies
• Latex allergies
• Food allergies

See full list of 14 Types of Allergies

Stories from Users Related to Allergies

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User Interactive Forums

Read about other experiences, ask a question about Allergies, or answer someone else's question, on our message boards:

• I can not get a diagnosis. Please help.
• Tell us your medical story.
• Share your misdiagnosis story.
• What is the best treatment for this?
• See all the forums.

Article Excerpts about Allergies

Something in the Air Airborne Allergens: NIAID (Excerpt)

An allergy is a specific immunologic reaction to a normally harmless substance, one that does not bother most people. People who have allergies often are sensitive to more than one substance. Types of allergens that cause allergic reactions include pollens, dust particles, mold spores, food, latex rubber, insect venom, or medicines. (Source: excerpt from Something in the Air Airborne Allergens: NIAID)

Allergies: NWHIC (Excerpt)

Allergies involve an immune response in the body to things such as plant pollen, other grasses and weeds, certain foods, rubber latex, insect bites, or certain drugs. Estimates suggest that allergies affect more than 50 million people in the United States. Nearly 10% of American women have pollen allergies. Allergic drug reactions, commonly caused by antibiotics such as penicillin, occur in 2%-3% of hospitalized patients. Severe allergic reaction to insect stings occurs in up to 5% of the population. Although most people have experienced a reaction to something they have eaten, only 1% of the adult population suffers from true immune reactions to food. (Source: excerpt from Allergies: NWHIC)