A. Allergy symptoms do commonly include a runny nose, with a clear, watery discharge, watery eyes, and repeated sneezing. Other symptoms can include having an itchy nose, congestion, itchy eyes, frequent throat clearing, frequent nosebleeds, and a cough. Children with allergies also often have dark circles under their eyes or 'allergic shiners'. These symptoms usually last for weeks or months for children with seasonal allergies. If your child just has a clear runny nose for up to 1-2 weeks, especially if it turns green or yellow or is accompanied by a fever, then it may just be a cold.
Since your child's symptoms only occur during a specific time of the year and seem to linger, he likely does have seasonal allergies, which in the spring are often caused by pollen from trees and grasses.
In addition to daily use of an antihistamine, such as Claritin™, Clarinex™, Zyrtec™ or Allegra™, children with allergies also often take a nasal steroid, such as Flonase™, Nasonex™, Rhinocort Aqua™, or Nasacort AQ™, to help control their allergy symptoms. A decongestant, either alone or in combination with an antihistamine (Claritin D™, Zyrtec D™, Allergra D™, etc.) may also be used. Over the counter allergy medications, which can be more sedating than newer medications, should usually be avoided if needed on a regular basis.
Singulair™ is another medication that can be used to treat children with allergies. It is available as oral granules and a chewable tablet for younger children who can't swallow pills.
It may also help to keep track of daily pollen counts and avoid a lot of outdoor activities on days when the pollen counts are moderate or high. Although it is not usually possible or desirable to stay indoors on all high pollen days, there are some steps you can take to decrease your child's exposure to pollen that he may be allergic to. For spring allergies, pollen counts are usually highest in the early morning (tree pollens) and afternoon/early evening (grasses), so limiting outdoor activities during these times may be helpful. You should also keep windows at home and in the car closed if possible, avoid hanging clothes outside to dry, and have your child take a bath in the evening to wash off pollens before bedtime.
Should you have allergy testing? If your child's allergies aren't controlled with standard allergy medicines, if you aren't sure that he really has allergies, or if his allergies are leading to a lot of complications, such as recurrent sinus or ear infections, then allergy testing and allergy shots may be useful. Allergy testing is probably more useful for children with year round or perennial allergies, since you are more likely to find something that you can avoid, such as dust mites, mold or pet dander.
In addition to standard skin testing, blood tests, such as the ImmunoCAP test can also be helpful. There are useful regional profiles available for different parts of the country to test for the pollens that your child is most likely to be exposed to.
More Questions and Answers > Visit our Question of the Week Archives
