Hazelnut and mountain alder already flowered in January in Northern Italy. In recent years there has been an increase in cypress and ragweed pollen which can trigger severe allergic reactions
Spring is upon us, but some pollens are circulating earlier than expected. the case for example of nut and ofmountain alder which, thanks to the mild temperatures, have already begun to bloom in January in Northern Italy. But for several years now, thanks to climate change, blooms and pollen production start earlier, finish later and often overlap, causing problems for allergy sufferers. Valuable help in these cases can come from weekly pollen bulletins and from pollen calendar, which disclose aerobiological monitoring data. However, this information is still little exploited in Italy, as he points out Paul Mascagni, director of the Complex Operational Unit of Occupational Medicine of the Desio Asst-Brianza Hospital and manager of the Monza-Brianza Aerobiological Monitoring Centre. Abroad there is much attention to the pollen problem. We saw this with the Expo in Milan, because we were in charge of monitoring pollen concentrations for travellers. In most European countries pollen monitoring networks are well represented and considered. Here too in some regions there are monitoring networks, but the data they make available is still underused.
The pollen calendar
Knowing that the pollen to which you are allergic begins to increase in the air in a certain area helps you adjust your therapy, plan the medicines to take while traveling and adopt a series of preventive behaviours. There are studies that demonstrate how patients with a good knowledge of the diffusion of pollens to which they are allergic also have a significant reduction in symptoms because they use better therapies and prevention strategies, with positive effects also on the quality of life – he points out Sarah Capriata, allergist and immunologist at the Occupational Medicine of the Desio Hospital —. Precisely for this reason we try to explain to our patients, graphs in hand, the importance of knowing the trend of pollen, suggesting among other things to keep a symptom diary, to then be correlated to the allergens present in the air. Knowledge of the pollens diffused in the air is also useful for parents of allergic children: when there is an increase in the pollen to which the child is allergic, they can intervene promptly with therapy or by taking him for a check-up.
Measures to limit exposure
The weekly bulletins and the pollen calendar (to consult it here) are also a useful diagnostic tool for the allergist, allowing him to formulate precise hypotheses at the basis of seasonal allergic manifestations. Knowing when the patient had more symptoms and which pollens were more widespread in that period leads us towards the skin tests to be proposed to identify the plant or plants responsible and then also in the choice of any hyposensitizing therapy (vaccine, ndr) adds Capriata. Knowing the trend of pollen, you can therefore play in advance. At the first symptoms, or even better before they appear, and, in the middle of the season when the pollen concentration is very high, you can put in place measures to limit exposure, how to fix your nose and mouth with a mask, better Ffp2 (during the pandemic its use helped reduce symptoms in allergy sufferers); wear sunglasses to protect your eyes from allergic conjunctivitis; avoid hanging clothes outdoors; use specific filters in the car and avoid playing outdoor sports at the most critical moments.
Cypress and ragweed are the emerging ones
The pollen count is used to have a global view of their trend. For this purpose, some specific parameters are used, such as the start and end of pollination, and the presence of one or more pollen peaks. These parameters are used to see not only the concentration of pollen and the duration of the pollen season, but also to highlight any differences between one year and the next – explains Cristina Tacca, a specialized technician who monitors pollen at the Desio hospital —. In recent years, as evidenced by the scientific literature, there has been an increase in some pollens such as those of cypress and ofambrosia, a herbaceous plant native to North America which can trigger severe allergic reactions. In general, there are frequent fluctuations from one year to the next in the course of the allergic season and its peaks. in fact it is increasingly difficult to make predictions due to climate uncertainty.
April 7, 2023 (change April 7, 2023 | 2:00 pm)
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