The development of an allergy to a dust mite. How does a dust mite allergy manifest?

The possibility of developing an allergy to dust mites is practically the only danger to humans from these microscopic creatures. In this case, an allergic reaction is an excessively acute response of the human immune system to contact with certain substances secreted by ticks and contained in the integument of their bodies.

Pathology can manifest itself with symptoms of varying severity - from minor nasal congestion or subtle skin irritations to severe bronchial asthma and deadly anaphylactic shock.

On a note

According to statistics, it is allergy to house dust mite antigens that is the most common cause of bronchial asthma worldwide. It is also the leading etiological factor in a huge number of cases of chronic rhinitis and other pathologies of the respiratory tract. Often people do not even suspect that the reason for their regular nasal congestion is precisely house dust with the waste products of dermatophagous mites contained in it.

The photograph below, taken with an optical microscope, shows the dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus:

And this is what it looks like under an electron microscope:

Nevertheless, the epidemiological significance of dust mites is very high: the number of cases of allergy to them is in the millions around the world, and not a single person is immune from its development, no matter how strong his health (immunity) is and no matter how clean his housing is . Moreover, as we will see later, the cleanliness of the house and strong immunity are factors that contribute to the development of allergies rather than protect against it ...

The mechanism of development of allergy to dust mites

It is known that the immune system develops a specific immune response to many substances that enter the blood or internal tissues of the body and are genetically alien to it. If this substance enters the body again in the future, agents of the immune system quickly neutralize it and prevent a possible threat to the body from this substance.

Such substances with a foreign genetic structure that the immune system identifies as suspected to be dangerous are called antigens.

The immune system overreacts to some of these substances. When an antigen enters the bloodstream or any tissue, an overly violent reaction of the immune response immediately starts, the manifestations of which often turn out to be more harmful and dangerous than the antigen itself. And in many cases, the antigen does not pose a threat to the body at all (for example, the waste products of dust mites), although it is identified by the immune system as a dangerous substance.

Such an excessive reaction is called an allergic reaction, or more simply - an allergy. Antigens that cause this overreaction are called allergens. In fact, based on modern understanding of physiology, allergies can be considered an error of the immune system in distinguishing between dangerous and harmless foreign particles.

On a note

Why do such errors occur? It is believed that this is due to the excessive "sterility" in which people live. The human immune system, adapted over millions of years to contact and neutralize a huge number of antigens, in the conditions of modern civilization is "underloaded". As a result, it begins to overreact to relatively safe substances.

Confirmation of this hypothesis is the fact that the frequency of allergy development is inversely correlated with the standard of living in a given area. Simply put, the worse the sanitary conditions in which people live, the lower their likelihood of developing an allergy to any substance. At the same time, statistics clearly show that the frequency of allergies in adults who emigrated, for example, from Africa or India to the United States, increases after moving compared to the same frequency among their peers who remained at home.

Typical allergic rhinitis is a truly "adult" disease. Children practically do not get sick with them, since their immune system is already loaded with adaptation to unfamiliar antigens.

The occurrence of an allergy to a particular substance is called sensitization of the body, and a person with such an allergy is called sensitized. Accordingly, when an allergy to dust mites occurs, they speak of tick sensitization. These terms come from the English word "sensibility" - sensitivity, and allergy itself in scientific circles is often referred to as hypersensitivity.

To make the mechanism of development of dust mite allergy even more understandable, it is worth taking into account the following fact: the more complex the structure of the antigen and the more biological activity it has, the higher the likelihood that it will cause an allergy. That is why allergies are most often caused by plant pollen, animal hair and bird fluff, various berries and fruits - they all contain complex functional proteins with a large molecular weight, which the “idle idle” immune system will most likely pay attention to.

Three types of allergens are associated with dust mites:

Digestive enzymes contained in the gastrointestinal tract of these arthropods and excreted in feces. Due to their microscopically small size and negligible weight, such feces easily rise into the air with dust and are just as easily inhaled by a person, and then cause a hypersensitivity reaction in the upper respiratory tract or in the bronchi;
Particles of chitinous covers (cuticles) of ticks that enter the air along with dust during the molting of these creatures, as well as after the death and drying of their bodies;
Substances contained in the internal organs of ticks that enter the human digestive tract when live ticks are swallowed with dust and food.

It is believed that the largest number of cases of allergy to dust mites are associated with two digestive enzymes contained in feces - Der f1 and Der f2. These enzymes are very aggressive towards the cells of the skin and mucous membranes, since they are designed specifically for the digestion of particles of the dermis (skin) - the main food of mites. For this reason, these allergens can cause allergic dermatitis.

In most cases, house dust mite allergy is cross-species. That is, if sensitization has occurred, for example, to the antigens of the European dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus, then when meeting with the American Dermatophagoides farinae, a person will also develop an allergy.

Less common is cross-allergy to antigens of ticks and various synanthropic insects - cockroaches, bedbugs, fleas. In this case, sensitization occurs not to species-specific enzymes, but to certain components of the chitinous integuments that are present both in ticks and other arthropods in the room. It is less likely to develop a cross-allergy between mites and other components of household dust.

Like any allergy, a reaction to dust mites develops only in a part of people, and the likelihood of development and its strength do not depend on the general state of human health and the strength of his immunity. There is even an opinion that the stronger the immune system of a particular person, the more likely it is that he may develop an allergy (however, this hypothesis has not yet been sufficiently confirmed by special studies).

It is interesting

Similarly, there is reason to believe that the cleaner the rooms in which an adult has lived most of his life, the higher the risk that this person will develop an allergy when encountering dust mites.

Studies have shown that the development of allergy to dust mites most often occurs when their number increases to a level of more than 100 individuals per 1 g of house dust. At the same time, on average, in all the apartments examined in the framework of the experiments, the number of ticks exceeded these indicators and amounted to 400-500 individuals/g, and in some apartments it reached 3500 individuals/g.

It is important to understand that dust mites and their waste products are found in almost every living space in the world without exception (and also outside of human habitation, if conditions with a suitable microclimate and food are available). This means that most people have some form of exposure to dust mites, and there is always a risk of developing allergies.

Typical symptoms of an allergic reaction to dermatophagoids

Manifestations of allergy to dust mites differ little from the symptoms of other allergic diseases, but according to certain signs, the corresponding reaction can be recognized even without special instrumental diagnostics.

Most often, an allergic reaction to dermatophagoid mites occurs in the form of one of the following diseases:

Allergic rhinitis, which develops frequent severe cough, runny nose, nasal congestion, pain in the eyes, sneezing;
Chronic rhinitis, in which some of the symptoms may be absent. For example, a person has only nasal congestion without a runny nose (especially at night), or a runny nose, but without conjunctivitis and cough;
Rhinoconjunctivitis, in which the leading symptoms are a runny nose and nasal congestion, redness of the eyes, tearfulness, pain in the eyes and the appearance of thick discharge from them;
Atopic dermatitis, which develops in different parts of the body in the form of redness, cracking crusts, itching and cracks in the skin.

If a person has tick sensitization, each new episode of allergy is usually more severe than the previous one. The difference in severity is not always noticeable, but over time, the patient notes that the symptoms of the reaction have become more pronounced, and the general condition worsens much more.

For example, it is in this scenario that asthma develops. Initially, only the mucous membrane of the upper respiratory tract is involved in the allergic reaction. Then the process spreads to the middle and lower parts of the respiratory tract until swelling of the inner surfaces of the bronchi begins.

Similarly, atopic dermatitis can be complicated by, for example, urticaria.

Anaphylaxis due to contact with dust mites was registered only in cases where mites in large numbers entered the digestive tract. Life-threatening conditions that have developed when tick-borne allergens come into contact with the skin or in the respiratory tract are not described.

An important feature of allergy to dust mites is its confinement to living quarters, most often to a person’s house. In this, it differs significantly from most other allergies: for example, it happens that a person feels normal at home, but begins to sneeze or choke only on the street - with flying poplar fluff or in the spring when certain plants bloom. Conversely, with tick-borne allergies, symptoms appear or worsen precisely at home, where a person comes into contact with dust. In the fresh air in such cases, a person feels better.

On a note

There are frequent situations when, with an actual allergy in a child, parents keep him indoors for a long time “with a cold.” Parents are afraid to let a "cold" child out into the street so that it "does not blow" again, they are waiting for the runny nose to pass, and the runny nose not only does not go away, but is aggravated precisely because of constant contact with the allergen.

It is only possible to make sure that the allergy is caused by tick-borne antigens only with the help of special studies (see below).

Diagnosis and confirmation of the etiology of the disease in the clinic

Allergy to dust mites must be differentiated from sensitization to other allergens present in the living room: various chemicals, pet hair, house plants, paints, fluff from pillows and much more.

Most often, this problem is solved by conducting skin allergy tests, also known as prick tests. Their principle is simple: if you deliberately introduce a small amount of an allergen into the body, then an unambiguous reaction will appear, while substances that are not allergens for a particular organism will not cause such a reaction. In this case, even if the allergy is usually manifested, for example, by rhinitis, then even subdermal administration of the allergen will cause an obvious skin reaction.

In practice, skin allergy tests are carried out as follows:

An allergist examines the anamnesis and narrows down the spectrum of possible allergens. For example, if it is known that allergy symptoms occur mainly in the home, then the experiment does not include allergens that the patient may encounter only on the street (plant pollen, for example);
The area of skin on the arm or back of the patient is cleaned with ethanol, and drops of solutions of histamine, sodium chloride and a set of alleged allergens are applied to it in the form of a mesh;
A special lancet is applied to the site, which makes light, insensitive punctures of the upper layer of the skin precisely at the locations of the drops. In this case, the liquid with the allergen from each drop penetrates the skin;
After a certain time (from several minutes to an hour), the doctor evaluates the reaction of the skin. Normally, histamine causes the most violent allergic reaction in any person, sodium chloride does not cause it at all, and at the site of its application, one can evaluate the skin's response to a puncture. The reaction at the injection sites of different allergens is compared with these standards. As a rule, during a standard test, redness with a diameter of 3-4 mm appears at the site of exposure to the allergen, and redness does not develop at all at the injection sites of substances that are neutral for the body.

The results of such a study require professional interpretation. Not always a positive reaction to an allergen is evidence of an allergy. Therefore, the doctor should compare the results of the prick test with the data obtained during the collection of an anamnesis, the study of the symptoms of the disease, and the analysis of the reaction to other substances.

The photo below shows an example of the results of such a test:

It is interesting

There are also diagnostic methods in which patients inhale aerosols with an allergen. They are less frequent, more dangerous, but in some cases more revealing.

In some cases, samples for chitin and other components of the outer integument of arthropods can give a positive reaction. In this case, only according to the test results, it is impossible to unequivocally state which specific “neighbors” in the apartment provoked an allergy. You can get an answer by conducting a survey of the premises: you can simply visually detect bedbugs, cockroaches or other insects visible to the naked eye. Here you should also examine the dust from several places in the room using a special test for dust mites - such a test allows you to determine the presence and concentration of mite antigens in the dust.

It is necessary to definitely suspect dust mites in the development of allergies when such a dust analysis gave a positive result, but no other insects could be found in the apartment.

In any case, all the results of such studies should be interpreted only by a doctor who understands the mechanism and causes of the development of allergies.

Treatment of dust mite allergy: desensitization as the main treatment

To date, there is only one method of completely curing dust mite allergy and several ways to relieve symptoms that give a temporary result.

A complete or sufficient cure is provided by antigen-specific immunotherapy (ASIT, or more simply - SIT), otherwise called desensitization. Its principle is that the patient is consistently injected with an allergen solution under the skin every 1-2 weeks for several months.

At first, the concentration of the allergen is very small - it is selected so that the body practically does not respond to it. With subsequent injections, the concentration is slowly increased, bringing in the last injections to significant amounts. With the correct implementation of such a series of injections, allergies never occur, and the body eventually adapts to large amounts of the allergen and no longer reacts to it under normal conditions.

In practice, complete desensitization is not always achieved. In most cases, the procedure is carried out until the body stops responding to the amounts of the allergen that it encounters in real conditions. This is enough for a dangerous allergy to no longer occur in a person, but hypothetically, the situation remains possible when the patient encounters a significantly larger amount of the allergen with the development of an appropriate reaction.

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In some cases, to obtain the desired result, only the initial course of ASIT is carried out. If after it the allergy persists, then a full course is carried out.

Sometimes ASIT is performed with resorption of the solution in the mouth. However, due to the partial breakdown of the allergen in the digestive tract, it is more difficult to precisely vary the amount of the substance, and in this form the procedure is carried out only when injections to the patient are contraindicated for any reason. Nevertheless, such drugs are gaining popularity due to the possibility of home treatment, and even special preparations for sublingual resorption are produced: Staloral "Tick Allergen", Allergovit. Similarly, injectable preparations are commercially available, for example, Alustal "Mite Allergen".

With all the advantages of ASIT, it has two drawbacks: long periods of treatment and relatively high cost. For this reason, it is not always rational to carry out this procedure: if an allergy develops in a person for a couple of days a year, then it is more rational to use means of quick temporary relief of an allergic reaction.

Remedies for relief of allergy symptoms

Antihistamines are considered the gold standard for allergy treatment. The principle of their action is that the active substance of such a drug blocks the receptors that react to histamine and trigger the allergic reaction itself. Even if the allergen enters the body and is recognized by the immune system, at the stage of activation of histamine receptors, the reaction fades and does not develop further. As a result, the external symptoms of an allergy in a person do not appear, and if they already exist, they disappear quite quickly.

Antihistamines come in a variety of forms, but for dust mite allergies, they are most commonly used as a nasal spray. It is these sprays that allow you to quickly stop the manifestations of allergic rhinitis. These include, for example, Histimet, Reaktin, Allergodil and others. The main advantage of such intranasal drugs is the absence of systemic side effects when they are used.

With dermatitis, rhinoconjunctivitis or urticaria, systemic antihistamines are prescribed in the form of tablets or syrups (for children). The principle of their action is similar to that for sprays, but they are active in all tissues of the body, and not just locally. The most famous systemic antihistamines include Suprastin, Diphenhydramine, Erius and some others.

Usually, antihistamines begin to act 30 minutes after ingestion, and the effect of their use lasts for 12-24 hours.

In allergic rhinitis, the following are also effective:

Sprays based on corticosteroid hormones - they stop the allergic reaction at the injection sites, while they are quite safe, despite the seemingly dangerous "hormonal" nature. Their active substances do not penetrate into the blood and tissues and do not have any systemic effect on the body. Examples of such funds are Nasonex, Alcedin, Flixonase and others;
Nasal decongestants - Naphthyzin, Galazolin, Tizin, which stop the symptoms of an allergic reaction for 3-6 hours and act very quickly. The effect of the use of the same Naphthyzinum appears within 2-3 minutes after administration. These drugs are very cheap and available, but chronic allergic rhinitis cannot be treated with them because of the risk of tachyphylaxis. It is noteworthy that some drugs contain both decongestants and antihistamine components (an example is Vibrocil).

On sale today there are also drugs that provide isolation of the surface of the nasal mucosa from allergens. These include, for example, Nazawal. However, studies have not shown significant improvement in the condition of patients with allergic rhinitis with the use of such agents.

If you are allergic to dust mites, washing your nose with a 0.9% solution of common salt is definitely considered useful, since this procedure cleans the nasal mucosa from allergens. However, not all people can carry out such washing (many are afraid of it) and, moreover, it does not provide complete relief of unpleasant symptoms.

Finally, folk remedies for treating tick allergies are ineffective, and sometimes even dangerous to health. To date, there is not a single natural remedy that would completely and quickly stop the symptoms of allergies. At the same time, most folk remedies positioned as anti-allergenic, in fact, can themselves cause severe allergic reactions.

On a note

A striking example of a pseudo-drug in this case is chamomile. Her preparations are unknowingly considered hypoallergenic and are often used to treat allergies. At the same time, a significant number of people develop an allergy to chamomile, even at least one case of the death of a child from anaphylaxis is described, when parents tried to treat allergic rhinitis in an 8-year-old girl with chamomile.

As a result, if you need to get rid of the symptoms of an allergy to ticks here and now (as quickly as possible, in just a couple of minutes), then vasoconstrictor drugs are used. Antihistamines and hormonal sprays are used as means for a more or less "long distance". For a complete cure of allergies, specific immunotherapy is carried out.

Prevention of tick sensitization

Studies show that with the development of an allergic reaction to dermatophagous mites, simply removing them from the premises will no longer provide complete relief from unpleasant symptoms. This is due to the fact that both the mites themselves and their antigens are found almost everywhere, and therefore, even feeling normal at home, a sensitized person will feel signs of allergies in other places - at work, at a party, in many other rooms.

Therefore, tick-borne sensitization is wiser to prevent, instead of then being treated for a long time.

What you need to do for this:

If there are a lot of dust mites in the room, and even thorough cleaning does not significantly reduce their number (this happens extremely rarely), then arthropods are destroyed by chemical means - preparations based on pyrethroids, organophosphorus compounds, neonicotinoids. These include, among other things, such common means as the Executioner, Get, Xulat Micro, Raptor aerosols, Raid and others.

Among the diseases that occur for reasons beyond human control and poison life, one of the first places is an allergy to household dust. The disease can manifest itself in any season, and even in those who meticulously monitor the cleanliness of the house.

Because a small amount of dust, which contains a microscopic dust mite, is enough for the reaction to occur. An allergic reaction is especially acute in children.

Therefore, cleaning in the apartment of people prone to allergic reactions should not only be thorough, it must be done with the help of special equipment that kill ticks and prevent them from multiplying and entering the human body.

Everyone suffering from this disease and all his relatives should be aware of how the presence of a dust mite in the house affects health and how to get rid of it. An important component of the fight against the disease is the possession of information about the methods of treatment.

Photo: View of house dust under a microscope

What is house dust

The dust that is constantly present in the apartment consists of a huge number of various microparticles that are formed as a result of the vital activity of people and pets.

hairs;
wool;
dead skin epithelium;
particles from clothing fabrics;
furniture upholstery;
various chemical compounds.

Each of these components can become an allergen for a person, but most often there is an allergy to house dust mites.

The habitat of this tiny creature is the world around us, and the food is the product of exfoliation from the skin.

Thus, ticks can settle wherever people and animals live, but their favorite place is:

bed;
folds of upholstered furniture;
pillows and other bedding.

What is the danger

In Latin, the genus of ticks is called Demodex.

The reaction caused by exposure to ticks is manifested:

runny nose;
sneezing
inflammation and swelling of the mucous membranes, up to suffocation;
as well as pruritus and eczema.

Any of these phenomena is unpleasant in itself, but the consequences that an allergy brings are much more serious than the listed symptoms. This is due to the fact that dysfunctional changes occur in the body during allergies, which lead to systemic diseases.

For example, a constant runny nose can become a condition for the development of polyps and other neoplasms in the nose, inflammation of the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract provokes asthma and makes the child sick for life.

Thus, an allergy is a springboard for the whole organism to malfunction. As a result of an allergy, a program of disorder of the entire health system is launched, so it should be treated immediately after the first signs appear.

The reasons

Allergies occur for many reasons. Among them are immunological, psychophysical and external, the latter include the very presence of dust in a person's home. The accumulation of dust pollution is typical for places where people rarely look.

It can be:

Immunological

The human immune system is designed to protect the body from various diseases. Immunological causes of allergies is the weakening of the immune system. This happens when a person reduces the barriers to control over the activities of organs and systems of the body.

For example, in the spring due to vitamin deficiencies. In addition, flora begins to bloom in the spring and this provokes a reaction to plant pollen, the appearance of pollen allergy becomes a factor in weakening the immune system and, in parallel, a reaction to Demodex may occur.

In this case, it is first of all necessary to cure pollen allergy, as the immunological cause of the reaction to the Demodex mite.

Psychophysical

The psychophysical state of a person is important for the strength of resistance to any disease. Dust allergy is no exception. Other things being equal, an allergic person who has experienced stress is more difficult to tolerate the reaction, because his immune system is weakly in control of the situation. There are cases when a person has external manifestations and symptoms of an allergy to dust, when there is no and cannot be a tick in the room and in sight.

Such outbursts for no reason can occur against the background of strong experiences or subconscious associations. For example, if you bring home a cleaned carpet that an allergic person has had negative memories of, they may have an allergy attack. These connections occur at the receptor level and in this case the CNS is subject to treatment.

Allergens

In addition to the main culprit of allergy to house dust - the waste products of the Demodex mite, other allergens contained in dust particles can cause this disease:

hairs of domestic animals, including cats and dogs, hamsters and guinea pigs and so on;
the remains of cockroaches and other beetle insects that are found in the house;
bird down, from which pillows, blankets, feather beds are made;
book dust - waste products of paper microorganisms;
mold and other fungal growths that appear in damp rooms.

Symptoms

Different types of allergies have similar symptoms, so the diagnosis is complicated and requires special studies.

Dust allergy symptoms include:

runny nose, while the phenomena of rhinitis are prolonged, accompanied by sneezing, accumulation of mucus in the nose;
redness of the eyes, accompanied by lacrimation, and turning into conjunctivitis;
inflammation of the respiratory tract, causing coughing;
swelling of the mucous membranes of the larynx, bronchi, leading to shortness of breath and suffocation.

Diagnostics

To make a diagnosis with very similar symptoms, a special study should be carried out. It consists in tests for an allergen. Before conducting them, the doctor collects an anamnesis and finds out when and under what circumstances signs of the disease appear.

Conclusions are made on the basis of a patient interview and test results. Only after that treatment is prescribed.

How to remove the allergen

Elimination of the allergen, which is the waste product of Demodex mites, is impossible. But you can remove other significant allergens.

For example, remove all down pillows and blankets, replace them with synthetic ones, get rid of fungus in the house, part with pets, cover bookcases with dust-tight glass. And, of course, you need to do impeccable cleaning in the premises.

House dust allergy treatment

There are several effective ways to treat an allergic reaction to dust. Among them are the use of drugs, folk remedies and immunotherapy. The immunological method is based on the fact that an allergen is introduced into the body, starting with microscopic doses, and then increasing them.

This training is not in vain, getting used to small injections of the allergen, the body does not react so sharply to large doses.

medicines

In our body, histamine is responsible for the outbreak and the development of a reaction to an allergen, in order to block its action, antihistamines are administered.

But any drug in this group has significant side effects. They inhibit a person's reaction to the environment and cause drowsiness. Therefore, doctors, along with the use of medications, recommend using other methods.

Video: Features of allergy treatment

Folk methods

Among the popular recipes for the treatment of dust allergies, it is recommended to rinse the nose with an aqueous solution with the addition of salt and soda. It is necessary to do irrigation of the nasal cavity often, optimally after three hours. Just a saline solution also helps, if you don’t have soda on hand.

Hot water steam inhalations also relieve the symptoms of a runny nose and inflammation of the mucous membranes. Deep inhalation of steam in the bath also helps.

Treatment with folk remedies in the form of decoctions of medicinal herbs should be used with caution, any medicinal plant in those prone to allergies can provoke an attack. Therefore, you first need to make sure that there is no reaction to a particular remedy.

A modern home treatment is air ionization with negatively charged ions. This can be done using an air conditioner with an ionization function.

Dieting and exclusion from food:

corn;
chocolate
coffee and other products, the harmfulness of which the doctor warns you about, will also help you avoid allergic provocations.

Proven ways

Among the proven medicinal preparations against dust allergy, treatment with a seven-component solution of:

centaury;
hypericum;
dandelion root;
rose hips;
field horsetail;
pharmaceutical chamomile;
corn stigmas combined in parts, for example, in tablespoons - 5 + 4 + 3 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 1 + 1.

Mix the raw materials, after crushing the rose hips and dandelion roots, take five tablespoons and make an infusion in cold water (1 liter) overnight. Leave all night, and in the morning heat until boiling, but do not boil. Then cool the infusion, and take 70 ml three times a day. The course lasts at least a month.

Prevention

As a preventive measure, use well-known dust control methods:

ventilation of rooms, especially bedrooms;
cleaning with a vacuum cleaner and a damp cloth should be carried out at least every other day;
frequent change of bed linen is necessary;
you need to abandon carpets and carpeted floor coverings;
getting rid of mold and fungal deposits should be a rule of hygiene in the house.

Disinfection

It is possible to fight ticks at home. To do this, subject problem areas and things to heat treatment. For example, you can remove a tick from clothes by ironing on both sides. Pillows and mattresses should be given for special treatment for cleaning. If necessary, call for professional disinfectors.

The topical remedy for the Demodex mite is DEMODEX COMPLEX™. This is a set consisting of soap, tonic, Kang cream for morning use and Xinsheng cream for application at night.

These drugs are proven and are considered the most effective in the fight against the mite that lives in household dust. With the help of these products, you will protect your skin from re-infection. Washing with soap Demodex complex can be used as a prophylaxis against contact with ticks.

Tortured cough, runny nose, lacrimation? You may be allergic to dust mites!

Sometimes we do not even suspect what kind of creatures live in our houses and apartments. But some animals are constantly next to us. Such "pets" are dust mites. These creatures, invisible to the naked eye, settle in apartments because they love dust. They do not bite us and do not eat our food, and yet they are not harmless "neighbors". Dust mites can cause a strong allergic reaction in a person and cause serious trouble.

Dust mite - who is he?

The dust mite belongs to the class of arachnids. It is very small - 0.1-0.3 mm, so we are not able to see it with the naked eye. The favorite habitat of this animal are books, mattresses, pillows, carpets, upholstered furniture - all places where there is enough dust. After all, it is there that there is enough food for these creatures. And dust mites feed on dead particles of our skin.

For the life of dust mites, conditions are comfortable when the air humidity is 55% or higher, and the air temperature is in the range of 22-26 ° C. And our apartments, as a rule, just fit these parameters.

Scientists have discovered about 150 species of ticks that live. And all of them can cause allergies.

Why does a tick cause allergies?

Most often, allergies occur on the waste products of ticks. The feces of this animal contain a special substance that provokes an allergic reaction in humans. In addition, the cause of allergies can be particles of ticks. All this, together with dust, rises into the air and enters the human respiratory system.

Dust mite allergy symptoms

The presence of ticks in our apartments can lead to the appearance of various allergic diseases. Among them:

bronchial asthma
allergic conjunctivitis
allergic rhinitis

A severe allergic reaction to dust mites can even cause angioedema, which can lead to hypoxia and even death.

All this clearly indicates that dust mite allergy needs to be fought.

How to deal with tick allergies?

The fight against dust mite allergy includes several important points:

Measures to eliminate the "culprit" of an allergic reaction.
The use of drugs.
Desensitization is a decrease in the sensitivity of the body to a dust mite and its waste products.

Getting on the dust mite warpath

It is impossible to completely remove dust mites from an apartment. But we can significantly reduce their number. To do this, you need to declare war on dust:

Try to reduce the number of places for potential accumulation of dust. Remove carpets and soft toys from the bedroom. Keep books behind glass, and all things in tightly closed cabinets.
Keep your bed clean. Change bedding frequently. Make sure that mattresses and pillows do not accumulate a lot of dust. Now there are special bedding created for allergy sufferers. Dust mites will not settle in them. In addition, the tick does not like high temperatures, so bedding should be washed at temperatures above 60 ° C.
Do wet cleaning 3-4 times a week - this way you will significantly reduce the amount of dust in your home.
Ventilate the room daily.
Keep the air temperature below 22°C while trying to reduce the humidity in the apartment.

You can also use special tools and devices designed to combat dust mites. So there are special nozzles for vacuum cleaners that help to "catch" ticks that live in your home. Air purifiers have been created that can “catch” dust particles from the air along with parts of ticks and their feces.

There are also special products for dealing with dust mites. They are added when washing or they treat surfaces in the apartment.

We treat allergies with drugs

Modern medicine offers a number of drugs that are quite effective for allergies. And although they, unfortunately, cannot completely rid you of an allergy to a dust mite, it is possible to reduce the manifestations of allergies and thereby significantly improve the quality of life with the help of medications.

Desensitization

This is a method of treatment in which an allergen extract is administered to a person suffering from an allergy in gradually increasing doses. Thus, the body of an allergic person is gradually "accustomed" to the allergen and it ceases to react so violently to the entry of this allergen into the body from the outside. There are standardized extracts of dust mite particles that are used to treat this.

Allergy is a manifestation of an excessive immune response of the body, a kind of malfunction in the functioning of this system. A set of measures to combat dust mite allergy will help you normalize the functioning of the body and “calm down” the immune system.

Questions from readers

October 18, 2013, 17:25 Passed the test for allergens, the result is a cat -positive class 3 +++, ambrosia -positive class 4++++, milk -positive class 3++++. Tell me what the class and number of pluses mean. How severe is an allergy? Thanks

Dust mite allergies are not uncommon these days. The abundance of carpets, books and soft toys indoors makes it a constant companion of modern man. This type of allergy develops under the influence of fecal masses present in the air and parts of the chitinous cover of dead arthropods. Close contact with the mites themselves and their waste products makes the mucous membranes and skin more vulnerable and causes a corresponding reaction of the autoimmune system. How to get rid of a household pest and is it possible to do this?

This is what a dust mite looks like

Brief description of the dust mite

Dust mites cannot be seen without a microscope. Its size ranges from 0.2 to 0.5 mm. The normal lifespan for both sexes is 70–80 days. During this time, the female manages to lay more than 50 eggs. The best habitat is a room with high humidity and temperature in the range of 20-23 ° C.

Attention. A huge number of dust mites are found in soft toys, the filler of blankets and pillows, pile of carpets, fabric upholstery of furniture and thicker mattresses. Especially a lot of them in the beds.

Contrary to popular belief, the bulk of ticks are not in the far corners of the apartment, but very close to a person - in bed linen. The right temperature, optimal humidity levels and, most importantly, plenty of food all make the fibers a very comfortable place to be.

Children and adults with poor health and low immunity are especially affected by the presence of small arachnids. In the cold season, the number of cases of allergy to dust mites increases dramatically. This is due to the rare ventilation of the room and the lower quality of cleaning. At this time of the year, it is difficult to knock out and dry bedding and carpets. In addition, many lay back the floor coverings, rugs and paths removed for the summer.

How dangerous is the house dust mite?

A dust (common) mite can feed on any organic matter that can decompose, but it especially likes dandruff and dead skin flakes. The pest does not like the living epidermis, therefore small arthropods do not bite and are not at all dangerous from this point of view. And the gnawing mouth apparatus is unsuitable for damaging the skin.

Dust mites cause several types of allergies: food, respiratory, contact. In addition to the defeat of the nasopharynx and skin, arthropods provoke many diseases:

bronchial asthma;
allergic rhinitis;
conjunctivitis;
all kinds of dermatitis.

It is skin lesions that are often confused with tick bites. Under the influence of digestive enzymes, a minimal effect on the epidermis causes severe itching, redness and swelling with a small rash.

Thus, neither adults nor their larvae directly harm humans. The main danger lies in the excrement of the dust mite, which it releases at least 20 times a day. Fecal masses contain specific digestive enzymes that corrode the living epidermis and provoke severe allergies.

Interesting. If the concentration of ticks does not exceed 100 individuals per gram, then the effect of enzymes is almost imperceptible. With an increase in the number of individuals to 500, a reaction of the body appears.

Signs of a dust mite allergy

The presence of a tick in an apartment is most often manifested by allergic rhinitis. Malaise symptoms include:

repeated sneezing;
copious liquid discharge from the nasal cavity;
eye redness and watery eyes;
difficulty breathing.

In infants, dust mite allergy symptoms are more pronounced. The mucosal edema develops rapidly, nasal congestion and a severe runny nose appear. The child cannot eat normally and refuses to breastfeed, constantly cries and is naughty. These symptoms are accompanied by loss of appetite and insomnia.

In addition to allergic rhinitis, a dust mite can provoke bronchial asthma, dermatitis or conjunctivitis. In this case, the following signs of a pathological condition will be added to the manifestations of the common cold:

photophobia, itching and pain in the eyes;
skin rash located on the face and neck, in the groin, armpits or elbow and knee joints;
shortness of breath of an inspiratory nature, wheezing when breathing, cough with sputum discharge.

Attention. In rare cases, an allergy to a tick is accompanied by Quincke's edema. With an increase in the face and signs of suffocation, it is necessary to call an ambulance.

If a dust mite really became the cause of the ailment, then an allergic reaction will be accompanied by some features:

the disappearance of all symptoms of malaise outside the home;
exacerbation of signs of rhinitis or asthma during sleep and cleaning the premises;
seasonality of relapses associated with the period of active reproduction of unpleasant neighbors and the cold season;
concomitant reaction to down and feather.

Most often, babies suffer from allergies to dust mites. This is due to the weakness of the child's immune system and more frequent contact with arthropods. After all, children constantly crawl on the floor and have fun with soft toys.

Treating an Allergic Reaction to a Dust Mite

Advice. If an autoimmune reaction of the body is suspected, it is recommended first of all to visit an allergist, who, if necessary, will involve an immunologist and other narrow specialists in the examination.

Dust mite allergy treatment includes the use of the following groups of drugs:

Antihistamines.
Nasal vasoconstrictor sprays and drops.
In especially severe cases, corticosteroids are prescribed, which are selected individually.

When taking medications, it must be remembered that they eliminate only the symptoms of malaise, and not the underlying cause. In addition, the drugs do not last long, only a few hours, so the fight against dust mites comes first.

Antihistamines

This group of drugs underlies the treatment of allergies. They are produced in the form of tablets, drops, including eye, nasal sprays and solutions. In emergency cases, intramuscular administration is possible.

There are currently four generations of allergy medications. With each modification, the effectiveness and time of influence increase, the strength of side effects and addiction decrease. For the treatment of immune reactions to dust mites, all types of drugs are used:

First generation drugs (sedatives)

They produce a good antihistamine effect, but have many contraindications. The duration of their action is 4-6 hours. This group includes:

Diphenhydramine;
Promethazine;
Tavegil;
Suprastin;
clemastine;
Peritol;
Meclizine;
Pipolfen;
Fenkarol.

Such drugs are usually used to treat allergic pathologies, which are characterized by shortness of breath.

Second generation drugs (non-sedative)

This group of medicines does not cause drowsiness and has fewer contraindications. Means are most in demand for dermatitis and itching of the skin.

Second generation drugs include:

Claritin;
Astemizol;
Trexil;
Zodak;
Levocetirizine;
Histalong;
Loratadine
Fenistil;
Semprex.

Such drugs are prohibited for use by people with cardiovascular diseases, since they have a cardiotoxic effect.

Medicines III generation

They are characterized by a good antihistamine effect and a minimum of adverse reactions. It is Zirtek, Telfast and Erius that are most often taken as the basis for antiallergic therapy in case of a reaction to dust mites.

The products do not have a cardiotoxic effect and do an excellent job with dermatitis and asthma symptoms.

Medicines IV generation

This group of drugs has a great advantage over its predecessors. Medicines do not affect the heart and do not cause drowsiness, but are contraindicated in pregnant women and children. This group includes: Levocetirizine, Desloratadine, Bamipin and Xizal.

Nasal

In addition to antihistamines, vasoconstrictor drugs and all kinds of solutions to cleanse the nose of dust mite waste products are widely used to alleviate symptoms. The choice of such nasal medicines is huge, so we will consider only some of them:

Aquamaris - goes on sale in the form of a solution for washing the nose, drops and spray. It is completely safe and can be used to treat pregnant women and young children.
Spray Atomer Propolis is a combined nasal preparation containing Aegean salt water and propolis solution. Indicated for children from an early age and adults.
Drops Tizin Allergy. Good for allergic rhinitis. It should be used with caution during the period of bearing a child.
Nasal spray Reaktin. Perfectly eliminates the symptoms and significantly alleviates the patient's condition.
Vasoconstrictors - Nazivin, Sanorin, Afrin, Vibrocil (for the smallest).

Additionally, the patient may be prescribed eye drops and ointments that relieve itching and redness of the skin with contact dermatitis.

Desensitization

A modern way to combat allergic reactions is ASIT (allergen-specific immunotherapy), based on the subcutaneous administration of minimal doses of a tick-borne substrate. This kind of vaccination allows you to get used to the irritant and not react so sharply to it.

Important. Very often, desensitization allows you to permanently get rid of the manifestations of allergies to house dust mites.

ASIT has contraindications, so it can be performed only after a thorough diagnostic examination.

Folk remedies

Alternative medicine is not able to cope with the manifestations of dust mite allergy, but it is quite capable of boosting immunity. And this, in turn, will lead to a decrease in symptoms and a decrease in the frequency of relapses.

Perfectly strengthens the body tincture of ginseng, eleutherococcus, magnolia vine. All immunostimulants are recommended to take courses of 20-30 days. After a short break, treatment is resumed.

Instead of pharmaceutical preparations with sea water at home, you can prepare a saline solution and rinse the nasal cavity with it.

Prevention of dust mite allergy

It is impossible to completely get rid of dust mites. They will always live next to us, eating dead organic matter. But to reduce their number and thereby reduce the negative impact on health is within the power of each person.

Dust mite allergy prevention includes the following activities:

Remove excess carpets, rugs and paths, and regularly shake out and dry the rest in the sun.
If possible, replace furniture with fabric upholstery with artificial or natural leather.
Freshen bedding at least once a week.
Monitor the humidity of the air, avoiding its increase.
Remove unnecessary soft toys from the house.
Replace feather pillows and duvets with synthetic fillings. This, of course, will not get rid of the tick, but it will significantly reduce its number.
As often as possible, do wet cleaning of the room and ventilate the apartment.

Large items such as a sofa, armchairs, mattresses can be periodically treated with a steam generator. The temperature in such devices is maintained at 95–115 ° C, which is more than enough to destroy an unpleasant neighbor.

As you can see, there is no need to do anything supernatural in the fight against dust mites. These measures will be enough, but they should become regular and routine. And allergy problems will be a thing of the past.

Attention. The article is for informational purposes only. A doctor's consultation is required.

Dust mite allergy is the appearance of symptoms of an allergic reaction of the body to the inhalation of these small animals and their waste products.

The dust mite likes to live in house dust, and about one hundred and fifty species of mites have been identified so far. Another name for a dust mite is dermatophagoid. Dust mites are microscopic in size, ranging from one tenth of a millimeter to one fourth of a millimeter. They cannot be seen with the naked eye. Dust mites feed on dead cells of humans and domestic animals. Tick allergens are excreted in mite fecal pellets, which are very small - ten to forty microns. In one day, each tick can produce about twenty balls. If you carry out dry cleaning in the house, then dust mites are able not to settle on the surface of the furniture for ten to twenty minutes. But if you inhale them at this moment, they remain on the surface of the mucous membranes of a person.

Most people do not react in any way to the presence of a dust mite in the house. But for some individuals, the presence of this animal is a source of severe torment, manifested in the form of allergic reactions. Such people are allergy sufferers and asthmatics, as well as individuals sensitive to these ticks. Children and the elderly are especially susceptible to allergic reactions. In autumn and winter, manifestations of dust mite allergy increase due to the fact that living quarters are rarely ventilated due to cold weather. Which contributes to an increase in the concentration of dust mites in homes.

Dust mites love heat and moisture, so their favorite places to "live" are bed linen, pillows, mattresses, carpets, upholstered furniture, soft toys. An ordinary mattress can contain tens of thousands of these animals, and if you turn your attention to the carpet, then about one hundred thousand ticks can live in its square meter. It is estimated that ten percent of the weight of a natural down pillow may be mites and their waste products. Hard and clean surfaces that are free of dust are not a place for ticks to “live”.

The best conditions for the reproduction and development of ticks are created at an air humidity of about seventy-five to eighty percent and at a temperature of twenty-four to twenty-five degrees. The lifespan of each tick is approximately four months, and this animal produces feces two hundred times more than it weighs. The dust mite lays up to three eggs in a lifetime.

ICD-10 code

T78.4 Allergy, unspecified

Causes of dust mite allergy

The dust mite settles in those rooms in which there is insufficient ventilation, accompanied by high humidity and high temperature (over twenty degrees). Additional comfort conditions for the spread of dust mites are polluted indoor air, such as cigarette smoke or car exhaust.

Allergic reactions are caused by the waste products of the tick - its feces. In the excrement of this animal is a substance that leads to allergic reactions. This happens at the time of inhalation and entry of these substances into the human respiratory system. Also, particles of dead mites that accumulate in house dust can serve as allergens, and when it circulates in the air, they enter the respiratory system of sensitive individuals and cause allergy manifestations.

The causes of an allergy to a dust mite are, first of all, the presence of an individual intolerance in a person of the individual components of this animal and its waste products. At the same time, it should be noted that the dust mite is an absolutely safe creature for a person and a constant companion of his life in the house.

Dust mite allergy symptoms

Dust mite allergy symptoms include:

The appearance of nasal congestion and copious discharge from it, as well as frequent and repeated sneezing. At the same time, these manifestations are accompanied by severe and constant itching of the nasal mucosa, its swelling. In children, dust mite allergy manifests itself in severe itching of the tip of the nose.
The appearance of constant breathing through the mouth due to the fact that the nose is constantly blocked. Such an unnatural type of breathing causes oxygen starvation of the brain, which leads to a constant and severe headache, causes general weakness of the body and a decrease in efficiency.
The occurrence of redness of the eyes and irritation of their mucous membrane, accompanied by severe itching and severe lacrimation; eye swelling.
The appearance of severe itching in the region of the palate.
The occurrence of a dry persistent cough.
The appearance of wheezing in the chest area.
The presence of difficulty in breathing and aggravation of the respiratory processes, which manifest themselves in the form of severe shortness of breath (inability to take a breath) and suffocation. At the same time, frequent awakenings are possible at night, caused by these breathing problems.
The appearance of skin irritation in the form of redness, peeling, itching and burning of the skin, rashes, urticaria and childhood eczema.
The occurrence of conjunctivitis.
The appearance of symptoms of bronchial asthma.

A severe allergic reaction to the waste products of ticks can cause angioedema in especially sensitive people, which in some cases leads to hypoxia, as well as death.

Diagnosis of dust mite allergy

Diagnosis of allergy to a dust mite is carried out with the help of an examination by an immunologist. During the examination, special samples are produced, that is, allergen extracts are introduced into the patient's body in special doses, and then the appearance or absence of a reaction to them is observed. As a result of passing these tests, it is possible to find out whether the allergy was a response to the vital activity of dust mites or not.

The main substances that cause an allergic reaction are the dust mite proteins Der p 1 and Der p 2. The Der p 1 protein has a weight of 25 kDa and belongs to the first group of dust mite allergens. The Der p 2 protein belongs to the second group of dust mite allergens and has a mass of 14 kDa. At the same time, this allergen is resistant to heating and changes in the acid-base balance of the environment.

There are special preparations for immunological examination in the form of molecular diagnostics, which can be used to detect the presence of an allergic reaction to any of these proteins. To date, modern medicine has identified twenty-three allergens found in house dust mites.

A clear understanding of which allergen caused the manifestation of an allergic reaction is important for the successful treatment of the patient, as well as for the correct desensitization procedure.

Dust mite allergy treatment

Dust mite allergy treatment involves the following measures:

As soon as possible, eliminate all possible places of “residence” of ticks, that is, eliminate contact with the allergen.
Use medicines prescribed by your doctor to relieve allergy symptoms.
Take care of desensitization methods, that is, reducing the sensitivity of the human body to the waste products of a dust mite.

Let's take a closer look at each of the above methods of treatment:

You can eliminate contact with the allergen using certain prevention methods, which will be discussed in the appropriate section.
Dust mite allergy symptoms are treated with antihistamines, corticosteroids, and nasal medications, which are prescribed by the attending physician during the consultation. At the first symptoms of an allergy, it is necessary to contact a specialist allergist, who can refer you for examination to a doctor - an immunologist for testing. With the help of these samples, it is possible to confirm or refute the presence of allergic reactions specifically to the dust mite components contained in house dust. Also, these samples improve the quality of treatment, since the allergist can prescribe for therapy exactly those drugs that help eliminate the symptoms of this type of allergy. At the same time, patients need to remember that drugs do not remove the root cause of the disease, but only eliminate its manifestations.

As a rule, allergic reactions to such allergens are treated with the following antihistamine drugs:

Telfast - is available in the form of tablets and is prescribed to patients older than six years.
Erius - the drug is available in two forms: in the form of tablets and syrup; the drug is prescribed to patients from one year.
Suprastin - available in the form of tablets and liquid for injection; prescribed for patients over six years of age.
Edem - the drug is available in the form of tablets and syrup, which can be used by patients from the age of two.
Agistam - the drug is produced in the form of tablets and syrup; indicated for use in patients 2 years of age and older.
Lomilan - available in the form of tablets and suspensions; the drug can be prescribed to patients from two years.

Aleron - the drug is produced in the form of tablets and is prescribed to patients from six years of age.

Nasal medicines for the treatment of allergic reactions include the following:

Aquamaris - available in the form of a spray and nasal drops; the drug can be used even for infants due to the safety of its composition.
Atomer Propolis - the drug is produced in the form of a nasal spray and is indicated for use in patients from one year old.

Desensitization occurs by introducing an allergen extract into the human body. The drugs are injected under the patient's skin. At first, this happens in small doses, but then, as you get used to it, the amount of the allergen is increased. This leads to the fact that the body of an allergic person gets used to the allergen and stops reacting violently when it enters the respiratory system. For these purposes, standardized extracts of dust mite particles are used. The desensitization procedure has another name - ASIT, that is, allergen-specific immunotherapy and allows you to permanently get rid of allergic reactions to house dust mites.

Prevention of dust mite allergy

First of all, it is necessary to frequently carry out wet cleaning of the entire house at least three times a week. Because the dust mite is “afraid” of cleanliness and lack of dust. The main condition is to clean with water and a rag, since a vacuum cleaner is an ineffective means of fighting ticks.
Regarding the use of a vacuum cleaner, we can say that this unit allows mites to be sprayed throughout the home. The exception is vacuum cleaners equipped with special filters against ticks. But this practice is not widespread enough, since these models are quite expensive. In conventional vacuum cleaners, the size of the filter cells is always larger than the size of the mites and their waste products. Therefore, the air that enters the vacuum cleaner is sprayed throughout the room, and then enters the lungs and causes allergies. The correct, albeit expensive, measure to prevent dust mite allergy is to purchase a special anti-mite filter for a vacuum cleaner.
Remove excess carpets, rugs and carpeting from the house. In some cases, manifestations of severe allergies, it is necessary to completely eliminate these coatings from the living quarters. A large number of mites accumulate in natural products, especially wool. In synthetic coatings, mites live, but in much smaller quantities.
Helps to get rid of ticks in the apartment the presence of iron furniture. Since ticks like to settle down on wooden furniture, along with the dust that has settled after the last wet cleaning. On forged furniture, dust does not settle in such quantities, which means that a dust mite cannot settle there in large numbers. Wardrobes for clothes should be airtight, like wardrobes, and they need to be constantly wiped not only from the outside, but also from the inside.
Upholstered furniture should be replaced with leather or leatherette, as mites like to settle in fabric furniture.
Unfortunately, you will have to part with such a home decoration as soft toys. They have a large number of mites that cause allergies. Also, do not use decorative fur pillows and bedspreads for the same reason.
Frequent washing of bed linen and nightwear at a temperature of at least sixty degrees will help get rid of mites. Since these animals love warmth, humidity and the remnants of human skin that our bed is rich in, frequent change of bed linen, pajamas and nightgowns will help get rid of them.
On sale there is a special bed linen for allergy sufferers - dust mites cannot settle in them.
Instead of conventional mattress covers in bed, you must use hypoallergenic ones. Dust mites have nowhere to "hook" in anti-allergic mattress covers, therefore, they prevent the appearance of allergies.
Living quarters must be ventilated at least once a day.
It is necessary to reduce the temperature in the rooms to twenty-two degrees and at the same time reduce the humidity in the room.
Special air purifiers have been created that can clean indoor air from dust mites, along with their excrement and dust particles. They must be used constantly in residential premises in accordance with the instructions.
There are also special tools for dealing with dust mites. They are added to water when washing clothes, and they also treat furniture and other surfaces with them.

Dust mite allergy prognosis

The prognosis of dust mite allergy in the case of drug therapy in the form of antihistamines, nasal agents and corticosteroid medicines is not good, since these drugs only relieve the symptoms of the disease. The patient for some time gets rid of the manifestations of allergies, but soon he is forced to go back to the doctor for a new course of therapy.

In the absence of treatment, the manifestations of allergy to dust mites will disturb patients constantly, especially in the autumn-winter period. In this case, not only the symptoms of an allergic disease will be observed, but also a general deterioration in the patient's condition, which will affect his performance, quality of life, and emotional and psychological mood.

A positive result in the treatment of dust mite allergy is given by the desensitization procedure or allergen-specific immunotherapy. The use of this method allows you to get rid of allergic reactions in one hundred percent of cases. In this case, the result is guaranteed throughout the life of the former patient, since relapses in the manifestation of the disease are completely absent.