Allergies, Asthma and Pregnancy

Allergy season is in full swing, so the question that I am often asked by my female patients who are pregnant is "Dr. Lubitz, what type of medications can I take for my allergies that are safe for my unborn child." Well, there are a variety of modalities I can recommend.An interesting article on the Mayo Clinic website recommends an approach that is the least invasive for pregnant mothers. It states:"*Avoid triggers. Limit your exposure to anything that triggers your allergy symptoms."*Try saline nasal. Over-the-counter saline nasal spray can help ease nasal dryness, bleeding and congestion. It can be used as often as needed."*Rinse your nasal cavity with a neti pot. Once or twice a day, fill the neti pot with an over-the-counter saline nasal solution. Then tilt your head over the sink, place the spout of the neti pot in your upper nostril and gently pour in the saline solution."*Include physical activity in your daily routine. Exercise helps reduce nasal inflammation."*Use nasal strips at night. Over-the-counter adhesive nasal strips--such as Breathe Right--can help keep our nasal passages open while you sleep."Now if these approaches do not alleviate allergy symptoms, there are prescription medications available. To know which medications are suitable, a physician gives his patient a Immunocap blood test. This test can diagnose pollen an food allergies during pregnancy. It's considered safer than a regular allergy skin prick test for pregnant women which may effect the fetus.The FDA classifies drugs that are safe for pregnant women with allergies and asthma on a scale of A, B, C, D and X. Category A is the safest shown through studies on pregnant women in the first trimester but for which there are relatively few drugs available at present. Category X which is the least desirable category shows clear evidence of birth defects in animals/and or human studies, and should not be used in cases of pregnancy.Many doctors recommend the use of Category B medications for their allergic pregnant patients. This means that medications have been used in studies in pregnant animals and are considered relatively safe in humans, but no human studies are available.The website health24.com lists medications classified in three categories. They include: "antihistamines, such as Chlor-Trimeton, Benadryl, Claritin and Zyrtec (generic forms) are considered Class B; decongestants, including Pseudoephedrine (Sudafed) are considered Class C and should be avoided by female patients during the entire first trimester; medicated nasal sprays such as NasalCrom and Rhinocort Aqua are used in treating allergic rhinitis and are classified as Class B. Other medicated nasal sprays such as Flonase are considered Class C.Concerning the use of asthma drugs in pregnant women, Pulmicort is a Class B drug most often prescribed to treat asthma in pregnancy. It is estimated that 1% of all pregnant women are asthmatic and controlling their asthma symptoms is a priority. To do this, doctors often use a variety of asthma drugs that may be from other FDA classifications of medications that are not in the B class. Their use depends on what types of symptoms their female pregnant patients manifest.When contemplating the use of any medication for your allergies or asthma, a qualified allergist should be consulted.To learn more: http://www.nycallergydoctor.com/allergy