Allergies to dogs

[Doraemon]

Hello-

I am a dog lover but have one problem. My allergies to dogs cause ichy skin, runny nose and constant sneezing within 10 minutes of being in close contact with them. I was wondering if Zyrtec would significantly help to relieve these symptoms. Have other people had success with it? What are the common
side effects of Zyrtec? The current medications I am taking are Zoloft and Trazodone, would it be ok to take Zyrtec with these 2 prescription drugs?

Thank you for your information.

Regards
James

[National Jewish]

You may find that taking ZyrtecŪ (cetirizine) with these other medicines makes you sleepy.  ZyrtecŪ (cetirizine) does have the potential to do this on its own, but added to the others, it might be more apparent.  Other than that, it is a safe antihistamine and can be used for allergic exposures.  However, this will not keep down all allergy symptoms with a high or prolonged exposure.

[starion]

Zyrtec in the US a prescription medication and can only obtained if you are prescribed it by a doctor.  I have been taking it daily for nearly 4 years now for my allergies and it has worked extremely well for me.  The main side effect I noticed initially was my mouth was drier for a while, but once my body adjusted, I don't have a dry mouth any more.  My kids complain that it makes them very tired & sleepy.  We're all different, so you'll have to find out whether it works for you & whether it causes YOU any side effects.

The two other most commonly prescribed antihistimines are Allegra and Claritin.  Different meds are effective for different patients, so you & your docs may need to experiment to find out what works best with the fewest side effects.

Another consideration is possible allergy shots, which might help reduce your sensitivity to docs.  This would be something you would need to discuss with an allergist.  There is a slightly greater risk for patients taking beta blockers like Toprol who have allergy shots, especially if they have a strong reaction to the shots.

Good luck--hope this helps.  Oh yeah, saline nasal wash and nasal steroids are also often helpful for folks allergies; appropriate eye drops prescribed by your doc can also help some folks.
Starion

[starion]

Combinations of drugs should be checked with your pharmacist & the docs who prescribed them.
STarion