Allergy Symptoms: An Overview
An allergy is the body's hypersensitivity to substances in the environment. Depending on what is causing a person's
allergies, symptoms can range from mild itching, sneezing, or eczema (inflamed, itchy skin) to severe hives,
hay fever, wheezing, and shortness of breath.
An extreme allergic reaction can result in anaphylactic shock, a life-threatening situation in which a person's airway swells shut and
blood pressure drops.
This eMedTV article will discuss allergy symptoms related to airborne allergies. Airborne allergies include seasonal allergies such as hay fever (also known as
pollen allergy) and perennial (year-round) allergies to things like dust or pets.
The medical names for these allergy symptoms include: allergic rhinitis and rhinosinusitis.
Allergy symptoms are familiar to many. The most common airborne allergy symptoms include:
- Sneezing, often with a runny or clogged nose
- Coughing and postnasal drip
- Itching eyes, nose, and throat
- Watering eyes
- Conjunctivitis (inflammation of the membrane that covers the eye)
- "Allergic shiners" (dark circles under the eyes caused by increased blood flow near the sinuses)
- "Allergic salute" (in a child, persistent upward rubbing of the nose that causes a crease mark on the nose).