Tailored Treatment Should Be Administered To Allergic Conjunctivitis Patients

When it comes to treating allergic conjunctivitis, the one-size-fits-all approach is definitely not the way to go. Doctors need to take all possible factors into consideration, prescribing a treatment tailored to the severity of the signs and symptoms, Healio reported citing Eric Schmidt, OD.

During his speech at the Vision Expo East, Schmidt pointed out that allergies differed and what worked for one patient may not do the trick for another. He said that the standard choice for treating itchy, teary eyes was a topical antihistamine but that was not a solution for all patients with allergic conjunctivitis. The antihistamine will produce different reactions in patients and different allergens would respond differently. Doctors should keep in mind a host of factors that can affect outcomes, examples being a patient's ethnicity and age and the side effects of the drops.

Schmidt went on to add that treatment options included offering patients advice on avoiding the allergen, for example in the case of people allergic to cats or dogs. The list of options also features artificial tears; sterile irrigation; topical decongestants; topical and systemic antihistamines; mast-cell stabilisers; dual-acting antihistamines and mast-cell stabilisers; nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and corticosteroids.

According to Schmidt, dual-acting antihistamines and mast-cell stabilisers offer the most effective solutions for treating allergic conjunctivitis. They bind to the H1 receptors in a higher concentration compared to the histamines, meaning that the histamines cannot reach the receptors. This makes it possible to prevent the histamine from bonding with the H1 receptors, which eliminates the cause of itching and tearing, Schmidt said.