Nonallergic Rhinitis

Nonallergic Rhinitis Treatment from St. Louis Asthma Doctors

If you suffer from non-allergic rhinitis, a St. Louis allergist may be able to give you relief. Many people tolerate discomfort for years, unaware there may be an allergy treatment in St. Louis available for relief. A consultation with a St. Louis allergy doctor may provide you with immediate relief, or one of our St. Louis allergists may prescribe ongoing allergy treatment to address rhinitis.

St. Louis Allergy Doctor: Non-Allergic Rhinitis

Non-allergic rhinitis, sometimes also called Vasomotor rhinitis, is accompanied by allergic-like symptoms but is not actually caused by allergies. Persons suffering from non-allergic rhinitis have been tested in our St. Louis allergy clinic and their allergy skin tests were negative, or had a few positive skin tests that do not fully explain your symptoms. It is often a surprise to patients when an allergist in St. Louis tells them that they do not have allergies, because often they have had allergy-like symptoms for many years. Actually, the symptoms of allergic rhinitis (AR) and non-allergic rhinitis overlap quite a bit: patients with both conditions may have nasal congestion (stuffiness), drip and drainage, sinus headaches and frequent sinus infections.

Our allergists in St. Louis often say that having NAR rather than AR is both good news and bad news. The good news is that the NAR patients do not have to close windows on beautiful spring and fall days in St. Louis, get rid of their pets, or take allergy shots. The bad news is that closing windows, getting rid of pets and allergy shots will not help NAR patients.

The triggers, or substance that set off the symptoms, for NAR are not the usual ones for AR (pollens, molds, mite, and animal danders). Triggers for NAR are generally irritants:

  • Fragrances (perfumes, colognes, air fresheners such as Glade “plug-in”)
  • Aerosols (hair sprays, cleaning products, etc.)
  • Dusts (house dust, drywall dust, dust from dirt roads or grass cutting)

If you have NAR, you are not allergic to these things; rather they irritate your inflames non-allergic nose.

Other triggers for NAR include physical factors:

  • Temperature changes (e.g., going from hot outdoor air into an air-conditioned room in the summer)
  • Barometric pressure changes (e.g., falling barometric pressure before rains)
  • Hot or cold or spicy food

Treatment of NAR: St. Louis Allergy Help

Treatment of NAR in our St. Louis allergy clinic, is different, too. Antihistamines (e.g., Zyrtec, Allegra, and Claritin) are important treatments for AR, but generally do not help people with NAR. Our St. Louis allergist team most commonly uses the following treatments for NAR:

  • Nasal anti-inflammatory sprays
  • Nasal steroid sprays (e.g., Flonase, Rhinocort, Nasonex)
  • Astelin nasal spray
  • Decongestants
  • Mucolytics (guaifenesin)
  • Atrovent (ipratropium) nasal

Asthma Clinic in St. Louis

Although we are commonly known as allergists, we are happy to treat you for NAR. In fact, an allergist in St. Louis is probably the specialist best qualified to take care of this sometimes-difficult condition. For diagnosis and treatment, contact our St. Louis allergy doctor office. One of the allergists will assess your condition and determine the best treatment method at our St. Louis allergy clinic. Accepting most types of insurance, our clinic is home to some of the best allergy doctors in St. Louis.

More info: https://www.aaaai.org/conditions-and-treatments/conditions-dictionary/nonallergic-rhinitis-vasomotor

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