Allergy sufferers endure one of worst springs ever

Friday, May 23, 2003 | 11:43 a.m.

Cecilia Celis and three of her four children are among the thousands of area residents who don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows. Or if there's pollen in the air. Or if the temperature goes up or down.

They know because their eyes itch. Their noses run. Their ears get stuffy.

And as what allergy specialists are calling one of the worst springs in memory winds down, they are among the thousands seeking relief, whether through shots, surgery, or over-the-counter medications.

"It's been a tough season," Dr. Joram S. Seggev said Thursday afternoon in his Sunrise Hospital office, moments after giving Celis an injection as part of her second month of treatment with the doctor.

"There's been lot of weather changes, which makes both patients with asthma and allergies as well as patients with non-allergic triggers more miserable," Seggev said.

"There's also been lots of things blooming, with worse weeds and other sources of pollen than I've seen in a long time."

Over at the Allergy and Asthma Center on Tenaya Way, Dr. Joel Katz said he was so busy that he didn't finish his morning appointments until 2 p.m.

"It's been a particularly long allergy season," he said.

"It got warmer about a month sooner and plants starting pollinating earlier. Then there's the wind, and most plants that are irritants are wind-pollinated."

Katz said he has been seeing patients suffering from allergies since late January and currently treats up to 40 patients a day.

The pollen counts in the Las Vegas Valley peaked two to three weeks ago, said Femi Durosinmi, air quality monitoring supervisor at Clark County Air Quality Monitoring Division.

Since then the counts have gone down from about 1,000 grains per cubic meter of air to about 298 grains per cubic meter, he said.

Still, the levels are enough to bring on symptoms in patients who have serious cases of asthma or allergies, Seggev said.

And pollen counts in the valley are relatively high compared with the rest of the country, Katz said.

Other factors affecting those who suffer from allergies include wind, which causes "a barrage of large particles in the nasal passages and smaller particles in the lungs...as well as broken down chemical products and parts of pollen," the doctor said.

And as temperatures go up, many people also bring dogs indoors more frequently -- which also brings more allergens indoors.

The good news, Katz said, is that the heat drives down the pollen count.

"By about mid-June you tend to get less seasonal allergies, so there is some relief in sight," he said.

Celis has felt some relief from the shots she has been getting for several months -- a treatment based on injecting diluted allergens into the blood, which makes the body less sensitive to those triggers in the environment over time.

Others choose operations such as those to remove polyps that block nasal passages. This procedure is not for everyone, Seggev said, and should be done with attention to preventing the polyps from growing back if they are linked to the allergies, and it should be combined with direct treatment for the allergies themselves.

People can also take measures to decrease their symptoms in what remains of the spring, Katz said.

These include: driving with the windows closed and using air conditioning in the car and at home, showering before bed to remove pollen from the hair, limiting outdoor activity from 5 to 10 a.m., and taking antihistamines when necessary.

After the reprieve of summer comes the fall pollen season, however, Katz said.

"It's been a severe year and it's not over yet," he said.