Allergies

• Can I talk to a doctor on Gotodoctor.ca about my allergy?

Yes, Gotodoctor.ca provides virtual care services for allergies. A doctor will take a comprehensive in-depth history and may provide you with prescriptions. Depending on the type of allergy and the severity of symptoms further recommendations will be provided. The doctor may direct him to clinic depending on the type of allergy.

• What is Allergy?

Allergy is an immune response to an allergen that is not harmful to the body^[1]. The cause of the allergy can be a foreign particle, pollen, venom, dust or pet dander. Antibodies are released against them to protect the body from the allergen. Skin testing is widely used to investigate the cause of allergy by exposing the body to different allergens and observing the body reactions^{[2, 3]}. Allergies cannot be completely treated, but symptoms can be controlled. Doctors diagnose allergies by their characteristic signs and symptoms^{[4] [5, 6]}.

• What are the symptoms of allergy?

Common symptoms of allergic reactions include sneezing, skin rashes, itching, blocked nose, swelling on lips, face and overall discomfort. Severe symptoms may include chest tightness, wheezing and watering eyes^[7]. These symptoms are seen in almost all the patients, which enables a doctor to diagnose and prescribe medicine. Symptoms may get resolve when anti-allergic medicine is taken or the environmental exposure to respective allergen gets removed from the body^[8].

• How is allergy treated?

Anti-histamine is a prescription medicine for patients who suffer from allergies^[9]. Decongestants are also given in prescription medicine as a short term treatment of blocked nose. Adrenalin shots, steroidal medicines are prescribed to control inflammatory responses generated by the body^[10]. In allergies and hypersensitivity reactions, if blood histamine levels cannot be controlled by medications, as the next step doctors may prescribe anti-allergic.

• How can an online doctor on Gotodoctor.ca treat allergy?

An online doctor on Gotodoctor.ca can treat allergies through virtual care services^{[11] [12, 13]}. An allergy can be treated via virtual care methods by monitoring blood histamine levels. Fever is common with acute hypersensitivity responses of the body. With a thermometer available at home, the body temperature can be checked and reported to the doctor. The online doctor will take a comprehensive history of your signs and symptoms. Virtual care services provided by Gotodoctor.ca assure comfort, convenience and a higher level of care for the patient^[14-16].

References

1. Sampson, H.A., et al., Second symposium on the definition and management of anaphylaxis: summary report—Second National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease/Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network symposium. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 2006. 117(2): p. 391-397.
2. Henz, B. and T. Zuberbier, Causes of urticaria, in Urticaria1998, Springer. p. 19-38.
3. Schaefer, P., Urticaria: evaluation and treatment. American family physician, 2011. 83(9): p. 1078-1084.
4. Imbalzano, E., et al. Association between urticaria and virus infections: a systematic review. in Allergy Asthma Proc. 2016.
5. Larenas-Linnemann, D.E., et al., Update on omalizumab for urticaria: what’s new in the literature from mechanisms to clinic. Current allergy and asthma reports, 2018. 18(5): p. 1-13.
6. Nettis, E., et al., Clinical and aetiological aspects in urticaria and angio‐oedema. British Journal of Dermatology, 2003. 148(3): p. 501-506.
7. Zuberbier, T., Urticaria. Allergy, 2003. 58(12): p. 1224-1234.
8. Humphreys, F. and J. Hunter, The characteristics of urticaria in 390 patients. The British journal of dermatology, 1998. 138(4): p. 635-638.
9. Jáuregui, I., et al., Antihistamines in the treatment of chronic urticaria. J Investig Allergol Clin Immunol, 2007. 17(Suppl 2): p. 41-52.
10. Pollack Jr, C.V. and T.J. Romano, Outpatient management of acute urticaria: the role of prednisone. Annals of emergency medicine, 1995. 26(5): p. 547-551.
11. Staicu, M.L., et al., The use of telemedicine for penicillin allergy skin testing. The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice, 2018. 6(6): p. 2033-2040.
12. Waller, M. and C. Stotler, Telemedicine: a primer. Current allergy and asthma reports, 2018. 18(10): p. 1-9.
13. Krishna, M.T., R.C. Knibb, and A.P. Huissoon, Is there a role for telemedicine in adult allergy services? Clinical & Experimental Allergy, 2016. 46(5): p. 668-677.
14. Portnoy, J.M., et al., Telemedicine and emerging technologies for health care in allergy/immunology. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 2020. 145(2): p. 445-454.
15. Pavlopoulos, S., et al., A novel emergency telemedicine system based on wireless communication technology-AMBULANCE. IEEE Transactions on Information Technology in Biomedicine, 1998. 2(4): p. 261-267.
16. Bergrath, S., et al., Implementation phase of a multicentre prehospital telemedicine system to support paramedics: feasibility and possible limitations. Scandinavian journal of trauma, resuscitation and emergency medicine, 2013. 21(1): p. 1-10.