Lisa is 6 years old and suffers from a chronic cough. For her entire childhood, Lisa has been considered very sensitive to infections, with long periods of coughing. Since school started 3 months ago, her problems have worsened. Lisa’s teacher considers her to be fretful and whiny, especially during gym classes where she often interrupts activities with her coughing.

Recently, the school nurse took action and referred Lisa to a doctor.

The doctor examined Lisa and found that she was underweight, that her shoulders were raised and that she had a slightly prolonged exhalation. The doctor suspected asthma or a respiratory infection. To find out, he decided to order an allergy test and tested for timothy, birch, olive, mugwort, wall pellitory, cat, dog, house dust mite, mould, cockroach, egg, milk and peanut. All these allergens are relevant in connection with wheeze symptoms.

The test results showed that Lisa is allergic to cat, pollen and dog. These allergens are most likely responsible for her symptoms.

Based on the test results, the doctor prescribed appropriate medical treatment and advised Lisa and her parents to avoid contact with both cats and dogs. He also informed the teacher about the importance of warming up before exercise.

The doctor’s advice relieved Lisa’s problems and her symptoms are now well under control.

The doctor will follow-up on her allergy to evaluate her response to treatment and her response to avoiding cats and dogs. He will also follow-up on her overall development in order to avoid an escalation of her symptoms.

In 2008, Carol noticed that her one year old son, David, often scratched himself in the face, specifically around the mouth area. Upon closer examination, she discovered slight skin alterations on his cheeks and torso. However, the symptoms were quite mild and could be managed with common baby cream.

David then had an upper respiratory infection followed by a noticeable worsening of his eczema. He also suffered from intense itching.

David’s mother brought him to the doctor who suspected either allergy or a secondary infection, perhaps staphylococcus. To be sure, the doctor performed an allergy blood test, testing for egg, milk, fish, wheat, peanut, soybean, hazelnut, house dust mite, cat and dog – the triggers that are relevant to symptoms of eczema.

The test results showed that David is definitely allergic to egg and milk, but that there were also signs of an emerging cat allergy.

The doctor’s advice to David’s mother was simple: Avoid milk and egg and try to avoid cats to minimize the risk of developing a cat allergy also.

The new diet had a marked improvement on David’s eczema and he was easily treated with just an emollient lotion. The quick decision made by David’s mother to take him to a doctor may well help David later on in life.

The doctor continuously follows-up on David’s allergy and eventually, both egg and milk may be reintroduced into his diet.

Like many other 11 year old girls Anna loves horses. She took up riding 5 years ago and used to help out at the local riding club until about a year ago.

Up until last year, Anna had been suffering from rhinitis and an almost constant case of blocked-up nose. This had persisted for at least six months. Moreover, she was constantly tired and could barely concentrate at school.

Eventually her mother had had enough. Anna, having generally been quite healthy throughout her childhood (apart from a mild case of eczema during infancy), had been chronically congested for the past 6 months, and was suffering from constant nasal obstruction and invariably itchy eyes, especially in the mornings. It was not unusual for her to catch colds, but surely this was something else? Perhaps she was allergic to horses?

Anna´s mother decided to take her to the doctor who immediately suspected allergy or infection, and possibly both. To confirm his diagnosis, and to find out exactly what Anna was allergic to, the doctor performed allergy blood tests for timothy, birch, olive, mugwort, wall pellitory, cat, dog, horse, house dust mite, mould, cockroach, egg and milk – all the triggers that are relevant to symptoms of Rhinitis.

Test results showed that Anna was indeed allergic to house dust mite,  birch and grass pollen; the strongest reaction being towards house dust mites. Now, knowing the cause of her symptoms, the doctor could prescribe efficient medication for Anna.

With house dust mite being a type of trigger that may contribute to the development of asthma, it was also important to discuss strategies for avoiding or at least reducing exposure to Anna’s allergy triggers.

Anna and her family were advised to take every available measure to avoid contact with house dust mite, by removing surplus textiles in the home, to use mattress and pillow covers and also to be cautious of exposure to pollens like timothy and birch. In addition, the doctor advised Anna to be careful about eating nuts, vegetables and stone fruits such as apple and pears, since these may also cause an allergic reaction in pollen allergic patients.

As it happens, by replacing the wall-to-wall carpet and wall hangings in Anna’s bedroom with non-fabric materials and by using allergen-protective bed covers, her problems have almost entirely disappeared.

As of three months ago, she has also taken up riding again. However, to avoid exposure to house dust mite Anna avoids horse grooming indoors and tries to reduce her time spent in the stables.

Anna now leads a perfectly normal life, with regular check-ups at her doctors’ office to make sure that she responds well to her treatment and that her symptoms are not worsening again.

Geoff lives in London. His first years in life he suffered from eczema, but his symptoms decreased and disappeared completely around the age of 4.

At the age of 26, Geoff married and after a couple of years he and his wife had two kids. The family is living in a house just outside London and when the oldest child pleaded for a dog, Geoff finally gave in and came home with an English Springer Spaniel. Everyone in the family loved the dog.

After about six months, however, Geoff finds himself with recurrent colds. He is constantly sneezing and coughing and nothing seems to help.

Finally, he decides to see a doctor. When talking to his doctor, Geoff also recalls that for a long time he has had symptoms similar to a cold at the summer season. Quite soon, Geoff’s doctor suspects allergy and performs an allergy blood test for cat, dog, birch, grass, horse, house dust mite, mould and weed pollen.

The test result shows that Geoff was indeed allergic to both dog and grass pollen.

The doctor’s first advice to Geoff was to leave the dog to a friend or family for a while to see if his symptoms would improve. He also advised on the importance of cleaning the house with the vacuum cleaner to get rid of all hair and dander from the dog.

Geoff took his doctor’s advice seriously and left the dog to some friends. After just a week his allergy symptoms improved. It was now even more obvious that the dog was the cause of his allergy and the family decided on giving the dog away permanently.

Geoff is now free from his symptoms. However, he has to take antihistamines during the grass pollen season. Hs doctor follows-up on him regularly to see that he is alright and that his symptoms are not worsening again.