In the previous Allergy Respiratory & Sleep Medicine blog, you learned a little about the difference between treating your Northeast Ohio seasonal allergies with over the counter medications versus allergy shots. Now, it’s time to explore other treatment options, such as corticosteroid therapy, and their pros and cons.

You know from the last blog that use of over the counter antihistamines and decongestants can be beneficial because they begin to work relatively quickly, as opposed to long-term treatment programs like allergy shots. The end goal with allergy shots is to treat the underlying cause of your seasonal allergies, not the symptoms. When administered by professionals like those at Allergy Respiratory & Sleep Medicine, an allergy shot program can actually lead to several seasons where you will be virtually allergy free. The same cannot be said for other medicines, particularly those that can be purchased over the counter. In fact, long term use of some of these medicines can actually be harmful. For example, extended use of decongestant nasal spray will eventually damage the nasal membranes causing new problems to arise, and making treatment more difficult. Continue reading →