Chronic Sinusitis: please come talk to me about allergy to HORSE HAIR!

[QuintessentialShadow]

I have had my skin prick test results.

I am extremely multi allergic, and oddly enough, I am very allergic to horse hair. I havent been near a horse for over 7 years!

Consultant says it must be in my soft furnishings then.

My sons violin bow is made from horse hair, but I am rarely in contact with it, and besides, it has only been in the house since Christmas.

Does anybody have any experience of this?

[wb]

Well - kind of. I'm extremely allergic to horse hair when its on, or recently from, a live horse (once had to go to hospital after a friend accidentally wore her riding gloves in my car) - and I have had mild reactions to v. old sofas but that could also be due to dust. Have never reacted to anything like a violin bow, though.

My exposure to horses was b/w the ages of 0 and 2 - when allergy manifested itself, and now 35 years later am just as allergic as I was then. So maybe your allergy does stem from 7 years back.

Strangely, although I had lots of food allergies as a child these all more or less cleared up by adulthood. My environmental allergies have, if anything, got more severe.

[QuintessentialShadow]

How odd. You must be very sensitive. Do you find that anything helps?

The consultants said I should be taking antihistamines daily. I am already using flixonase, but she recommended Clarityn. Any experience?

I am allergic to so many things. Weeds, trees (but not really pollen), dust mites, cats and dogs, but horse hair had the strongest result, I find it strange.

I think I shall go see a specialist, I mean, I knew I am allergic to many plants, such as poinsetta, carnations, lillies, etc, and cats, but horse hair?

[wb]

I use Clarityn for hayfever in the summer but don't need anything daily for the horse hair - just strict avoidance (and immediate use of ventolin inhaler if any contact).

Is your consultant sure its the horse hair that is causing your sinusitis? I mean, you could be allergic to horses if you came across one but be reacting to something else day to day.

[QuintessentialShadow]

I have an appointment with an allergy consultant at the end of the month, hopefully I will have more answers then. The consultant I saw yesterday was an ENT consultant, and more from a surgical perspective. When I am this allergic, they are for the time being ruling out operation, I need to get the allergy under control.

I have no idea if it is the horse hair causing my sinusitus or something different. Most likely something different. I read that it is mostly just antique furniture that has horse hair stuffing! We dont have antique furniture, old and battered yes, but not antique!

[nightcat]

Nothing to do with horsehair, but I am considering ripping out gas hob, because me and ds seem to have permanently bunged up noses since we moved. Can't be furnishings, coz we have leather suite and no carpets. I supsect, even though gas supposedly is "clean", it still gives out fumes to the surroundings, even under extract.
Just a thought in case you cook on gas, no idea how/if you can be tested for this, I reckon it goes under chemical sensitivities, but it concerns me enough to remove it soon.