Untreated sinus allergies affect sexual function

	Tweet

Symptoms of itchy, tearing eyes and nasal congestion due to seasonal allergies interfere with individuals’ ability to enjoy sex, results of a study conducted in Turkey suggest. However, successful treatment with an antihistamine can help.

Seasonal allergies are known to interfere with work, school and social life. But up until now, the investigators say, there have been no studies examining sexual function in these patients.

Dr. Cengiz Kirmaz and colleagues at the Celal Bayar University Hospital in Manisa surveyed 27 women and 16 men with seasonal allergies and 40 healthy adults (20 women and 20 men).

They observed that women with untreated seasonal allergies had reduced sexual desire, arousal, ability to reach orgasm and intercourse satisfaction compared with the healthy control subjects. Allergies affected men’s erectile function, intercourse satisfaction, sexual desire and overall satisfaction with sex.

Patients with allergies were treated for 30 days with the oral antihistamine desloratadine for 30 days, after which they repeated the sexual function questionnaires. Results showed that after their symptoms were controlled, their sexual function was not significantly different from that of the healthy controls.

“The impact of allergic symptoms on the sexual functioning of our patients has been under appreciated,” Kirmaz’s team concludes in a report in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology.

SOURCE: Annals of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology December 2005.

RELATED STORIES:
Drug allergy discovery   Kids on cow farms may have fewer allergies   Researchers identify new regulator in allergic diseases   Low serum adiponectin levels predict future risk for asthma in women   Test to improve peanut allergy diagnosis   Anti-IgE Drug Speeds Up Allergy Therapy   Moms Mistakenly Claim Own Food Allergies   Food Allergy Common in Joint Disorder   Molecule That Offers Hope For Future Allergy Treatments Discovered   Adding Proton Pump Inhibitor to Treat Poorly Controlled Asthma in Children Does Not Improve Symptoms   Accelerated infant growth increases risk of future asthma symptoms in children   Getting a Cat Ups Allergy Risk in Adults

Comments

[ + Post Your Own ]

Now you're in the public comment zone. What follows is not Armenian Medical Network's stuff; it comes from other people and we don't vouch for it. A reminder: By using this Web site you agree to accept our Terms of Service. Click here to read the Rules of Engagement.

There are no comments for this entry yet. [ + Comment here + ]