




 


|
Culprit
|
Pollen |
When |
Rosefever (flowers and trees)- April
Grasses and weeds- end of May and June
Hayfever- Second week of August until frost (about the end of
September, but varies)
|
Where |
Temperate
areas of the world, especially midwest United States |
Symptoms |
Nasal Congestion
Clear Nasal drainage
Watery itchy eyes
Sneezing
Fatigue
Lack of Energy
Wheezing if asthma tendency |
What
to do |
Avoid the pollen
Stay inside
Keep car and building window closed
Use air conditioner
Drink plenty of water |
Treatment |
Over-the-counter
antihistamines, with or without decongestans. There are so many
different options that it is impossible to list them all. I will
just mention a few. Use what gets the job done without causing
intolerable side effects. Cost may be a factor in choosing. |
The following drugs are ones that I recommend frequently. The
following prices and amounts I obtained from the shelves of
my local Wal-Mart Supercenter. This is just to give you an idea
for comparision.
|
Drug
|
Size
|
Cost
|
Cost per Pill
|
Comment
|
Benadryl |
24 pills |
$2.97 |
$0.12 |
One of the original, also has combination with decongestant. |
Chlor-Trimeton 4hr. |
24 pills |
$4.72 |
$0.20 |
Have 4mg, 8mg and 12 mg strengths.
Can be combined with decongestant. |
Chlor-Trimeton 12 hr. |
24 pills |
$8.96 |
$0.37 |
|
Tavist |
24 pills |
$5.97 |
$0.25 |
One of the newer ones to jump
from prescription to OTC |
Tavist D |
24 pills |
$5.97 |
$0.25 |
|
Dimetapp extentabs |
24 pills |
$7.07 |
$0.33 |
Long acting combination of brompheniramine
and phenylpropanolamine. Other preparations under the Dimetapp
label. Dimetapp elixir is one of my all time favorites for kids. |
Actifed |
24 pills |
$4.38 |
$0.18 |
Contains combination of triprolidine and pseudoephedrine. |
Dristan |
20 pills |
$4.47 |
$0.22 |
Name very familiar, effect only
lasts 4 hours. |
Other tips in choosing and taking the
medicine |
Follow labeling for directions and side effects. The most common
side effects in my experience are drowsiness, stimulation, and
dry mouth. Effects of medicine will vary from patient to patient.
Men with enlarged prostates could have increased trouble urinating.
If you have medical conditions you should always check with your
own doctor for advice on allergy medicines, although if medical
conditions are stable, a short course of these medicines is usually
tolerated. Your own doctor would know your situation best. For
best results, try drugs with different ingredients (read the label)
in order to see which one works best for you with the least side
effects. Don't just use a different brand name, because they may
have the same ingredients.
The drugs listed above are, for the most part, different from
each other in some way. |
There are many prescription antihistamines available.
Your doctor will know which one is best for you. The newest drugs
are, of course, the center of attention, and many marketing $$
are spent on the public, and on doctors, so that these are prescribed.
There is no question these new drugs work and have less side effects
than previous antihistamines, but they certainly are expensive,
and probably should not be used unless others have been tried
unsuccessfully, or are not an option. Prices will vary with pharmacy.
|
Drug
|
Size
|
Cost
|
Cost per Pill
|
Comment
|
Allegra |
60 pills |
$60 |
$1.00 |
Allegra is www.allegra.com
twice a day, Claritan and Zyrtec are once a day. You may or may
not get by taking Allegra once a day, but if you do you will save
$$. Otherwise, the cost is about the same. Allegra D and Claritan
D are decongestant combinations which some patients may find beneficial.
Furthermore, with Allegra, if the patient has trouble sleeping
at night because of the decongestant, then I will have them take
the plain Allegra at bedtime and the Allegra D
in the AM. In my experience, Zyrtec may be a tiny bit more potent,
but also has a very slight chance of sedation.
Nasal sprays with corticosteroids are also an option that
work quite well for allergic rhinitis. It may come down to patient
choice and whether you want to use a pill or a spray. For patients
that can't tolerate the oral medication, or need additional help
in controlling their allergies, then the nasal sprays may be an
option.
Again cost may be a factor. Some representative corticosteroid
nasal sprays follow.
Flonase and VancenaseDS are once a day sprays, while Nasarel is
twice a day. Once improved though, you may be able to maintain
symptom free status with just once a day, thus saving money. The
selection of one spray over the other may be a preference of how
the spray feels. What I like to do is give the patient samples
and let them decide what works. |
Claritan |
30 pills |
$59 |
$1.97 |
Zyrtec |
30 pills |
$57 |
$1.90 |
Flonase |
120 sprays |
$50 |
$0.42 |
Nasarel |
200 |
$44 |
$0.22 |
Vancenase
DS |
120 |
$56 |
$0.47 |
Other prescription antihistamines and nasal sprays not mentioned
above
Atrohist
Bromfed
Dura-Vent A
Extendryl
Fedahist
Hismanol
Kronofed A
Naldecon
Nolamine
Periactin
Rynatan
Semprex D
Trinalin |
Beconase
Dexacort
Nasacort
Nasalcrom(OTC)
Rhinocort |
What else
If nothing is working make sure you've seen your doctor. If you've
already seen the doctor, then see the doctor again. What I use frequently
for hayfever when additional medication is needed, or even as a first
line treatment because of simplicity or patient choice, is a corticosteroid
such as prednisone orally, or an injection such as triamcinalone.
The additional benefit is that these medications are not very expensive.
|