Probable Dust Mite allergy - any idea of how to lessen symptoms?!

[SomethingSuitablyWitty]

Hello! I'm new to this part of MN, but there seems to be a lot of knowledge here and I'm interested in knowing more about any possible treatment/symptom alleviation for my DH.

For years he has complained of a "sensitive" nose and things like air conditioning set him off with sneezing attacks, sinus pain and significant discomfort. Mornings are bad and some days (with no obvious trigger) he can have sneezing fits and a runny nose lasting for hours and hours. Consultation with a specialist a few years back led to him having a diagosis of a dust mite allergy and also an op to deal with a septum problem that was blocking one of his nostrils apparently - that went fine and seemed to help a bit for a while, but not for long.

He still sees the specialist and he started a treatment called "staloral" about three years ago, which seems to be an allergen de-senitization treatment (drops). It has made absolutely no difference and he thinks he is actually worse than ever. He does sometimes take antihistamines, but only the drowsy ones seem to actually work and they affect him quite badly - feels like he can't function properly, so only takes when desperate.

We have no carpets or mats or open bookshelves in our home. We hoover and change bedding frequently (though perhaps could do better on this if we got more organised). But even so, work, where there is permanent air-conditioning, is an ongoing problem, so I'm not sure whether frequent laundering of the duvet etc would really be worth the hassle - but am prepared to be told otherwise.

DH gets really down and even angry about it at times - the constant discomfort is very wearing. I am sympathetic, but don't know what to suggest any more. Are there alternative therapies that might help? Any ideas or experience would be most welcome.

Damp dusting and non drowsy anti hystamine tablets would be my only suggestion - he needs to go back to the GP if the treatment he has been given isn't working.

1. keep trying different types of antihistamine at night there are loads of them and one may suit him better. they take a while to build up in the body taking them on odd occasions mean they will not work very well. it would take a couple of weeks to a month to see clear continued effect on symptoms.

1. nasel sprays REALLY work, and do need to be taken, CORRECTLY as prescribed. There are a varity of nasel sprays available on the nhs as well to try, some are better than others.

1. anti dustmite bedding, good quality ones are VITAL.

4 pollen/dustmite filter in bedroom. works very well for my sons severe dustmite allergy. He has reported a deeper better quality of sleep since we put one in his room pointing at his bed!

1. it might not just be the dustmite allergy that is causing the problem has he been tested for other environmental allergies? (allergies dont often come in ones. make a note of time of year of worst symptoms on calender, and ask for testing from gp.

1. boil wash the bedding only works with good antidustmite covers.

1. hepra filter vaccum only.

1. damp dusting.

9 no wet or damp clothes on rads in winter.

10. dont make yr bed, pull back duvet /covers in morning to allow it to air.

11. we only have a stair carpet and carpet in front room, and wooden floors every were else. we have leather sofas and washable cushions and throws.

btw my son has environmental allergies to, dustmite/cat/dog/tree pollen/hay fever/mold.

Thanks a lot to both of you - and eragon that's really a lot of good advice, which we probably need to get serious about taking on board. We don't do those things and DH is inclined to discount them a bit, but it's something we should work towards clearly. We have moved house recently and we are facing into significant renovation work, so I guess this be something to aim for following that. Good tip on the anti-mite bedding. We don't have down, but we don't have anything more either. Could you also point me in the direction of a filter? (brand?) I haven't heard of them before.

allergy UK recomend some brands, we just brought a very cheap one from ikea, and son was amazed at the difference. we are considering buying more expensive one for him , and keeping the cheap one for my husband who has asthma.

we go to john lewis for the dust mite bedding covers. a mattress cover, duvet cover and pillow covers .

All of what Eragon says.

Also, does he have a lot of soft toys on the bed? If so they could be full of dust mites so cut back on them and give them the once over with the sucker part of the hoover every now and again - odd I know. I was given all sheet from the hospital as dd is allergic and it recommends putting soft toys in the freezer for 6 hours every now and again (!) to kill them off.

Hoover mattress once a fortnight too.