stanfordallergist

Hello, I am glad to hear that Allermi is starting to work well for you. It is not unsafe to swallow tiny amounts of your nasal spray that drip down the back of the throat. However, this does potentially increase the likelihood of developing certain side-effects such as nausea. It also suggests that you may not be using the correct technique when taking your nasal spray - as we say, if you taste it, you waste it! We need the nasal spray medication to stay in the nose where it belongs.

So, please make sure you're doing the following every time when taking your Super Spray to get the best results:
-Shake your Super Spray bottle well
-While seated on the edge of your bed or chair, lean forward and look down straight towards your toes in the nose-to-toes position, so that your chin touches your chest
-Insert the nozzle as deep as comfortable, ideally about 1/2 an inch into the nose, straight up into the nose
-Press the opposite nostril closed
-Pump your nasal spray with a short, firm pump and sniff up once
-Immediately begin 15 seconds of short, rapid little "bunny" sniffs after each spray, breathing out through the mouth when needed - not big, high-suction sniffs - to bring the medication up into the nose
-Keep your head pointed down, in the nose-to-toes position, the whole time!
-Repeat for the other side
-Don't lift your head up until you're fully done with your treatment on both sides!
-Avoid tilting your head back or lying down for a full 30 minutes after taking your Super Spray.
Please pay special attention to these instructions and let us know how you do!

Here is a short video I made demonstrating the proper technique.

Hello, and thank you for your question. Albuterol is used as a "rescue" medication to relax the muscles surrounding your bronchial passages so that the effort of breathing is reduced and that chest-tightness, wheeze and/or cough are controlled.

However, continued exposure to inflammatory agents - whether it be allergens, irritants, viruses, etc. - is likely to continue to promote inflammation of the lining of your bronchial passages, which runs the chance of making asthma progressively worse.

Thus, particularly when a significant source of allergen, such as your cats, continues in your presence, it is important to also be taking an anti-inflammatory medication for your lower airways, for sustained, daily use. For this purpose, please consult your primary care physician, allergist or pulmonologist.

Examples of inhaled medications that include helpful anti-inflammatory medication are Flovent, QVar, Arnuity, Pulmicort, Symbicort, Dulera, Breo, Trelegy, Advair, Wixela and Breztri.

An allergy immunotherapy program, properly known as allergy shots, can also reduce and control airway inflammation over time, but such immunotherapy programs involve a lengthy commitment, generally a minimum of 5 years of monthly injections.

I hope this information is helpful.

Hello and thank you for your question. I'm sorry to hear you have been experiencing this.

Isolated tachycardia is highly unlikely to have an allergic cause. Other than foods that contain identifiable cardiac stimulants, such as foods that contain caffeine or theobromine - which is present in cacao/dark chocolate - there is no clear biochemical connection that I can think of between ingestion of the food and cardiac stimulation.

Pure canola oil, which should be 100% lipid, should be completely non-allergenic.

With respect to acid reflux, "silent" acid-reflux conditions, which may not be associated with acid indigestion, heartburn or regurgitation, might still cause a tachycardic response. Thus, bringing the symptoms that you described to the attention of your gastroenterologist could be quite helpful.

Continued follow-up with your cardiologist would also be recommended.

I hope this is helpful.

Hello and thank you for your question. Whether to pursue a PhD might depend on what you envision to be the nature of your involvement in medicine and biomedical research - whether it is in private practice, a university setting or in the biotechnology sector. From a purely educational standpoint, pursuing a PhD tends to sharpen one's ability to analyze scientific research, the merit of new scientific discoveries and in general, refines the ability to analyze raw data and determine its potential clinical, and not solely its statistical, significance. I personally am quite grateful to have devoted time and effort toward a PhD and have found that doing so has enabled me in perpetuity to bring a higher level of scientific accuracy to the care of my patients, and to be able to formulate more-informed patients' many questions regarding diagnostic testing and pharmacotherapy. Wishing you continued success in your educational and professional endeavors!

Hello, I am sorry to hear you're experiencing this. Your history of allergy does make you more likely to develop new allergic reactions in the future, so it is possible that your eye swelling is related to allergy. I would recommend you contact your primary care doctor or allergist, or visit urgent care as soon as you can.

In the meantime, what I would recommend to my own patient that would be generally safe would be to try a non-sedating oral anti-histamine. For this, we would recommend generic, non-prescription Allegra (fexofenadine), 180-mg, twice-daily. I would also recommend Pataday Extra-Strength (olopatadine) 0.7% antihistamine eye drop, one drop per eye once daily. And, lastly, ice-pack treatment of your eyes using ice covered by a thin towel for 5-10 minutes at a time, several times a day.

I hope this is helpful.