Pollen count high! Any meds advice?

Afternoon (or morning) all,

We have been lucky this weekend to have fantastic weather. For us fantastic means 24 degrees C, or 75 F.

This comes with its own set of challenges: I love spending time outside in the sun and heaven only knows doing so will aid my vitamin D levels and help strengthen my bones! (I have been taking strong vit D/C combined supplements on hepatologist's advice). BUT, at this time of year there is so much pollen flying around, and if you, like me, suffer from hay-fever you'll know how awful this can be. Yesterday my eyes were red raw from rubbing and I felt like I head a head cold!

Determined to see a bit more sun (it is so rare for us here) I am looking through my meds that I would take for hay-fever pre-diagnosis. I remember reading that of the two common drugs that we have in the UK - Loratadine and Cetirizine Hydrochloride - the latter is better for the liver, as 80% is removed in urine and only 10% excreted. However, I think that of the two this is the one that makes you drowsier.

I meant to check with the hepatologist last time I had an appointment. Given that I won't take anything normally that's not prescribed (I even feel a bit ambivalent about Omeprazole since the manufacturer's info suggests that it is contraindicated in patients with liver disease), do you think that I am putting myself at unnecessary risk by taking one dose of the Cetirizine?

I don't see my hepatologist until September, and when I asked my primary care clinician they told me to check back with the hospital.

In the mean time, I don't think I can cope without (a) either something to relieve the symptoms of hay-fever or (b) staying indoors for most of the summer - which I would definitely rather avoid having to do.

Any thoughts?

Hugs,

Jamie.

Post Edited By Moderator (hep93) : 6/30/2013 11:33:29 AM (GMT-6)

Benedryl, also known as diphenhydramine.

Perfectly safe, I take it for allergies. My hep said 25 mg every 10 to 12 hours.

SyXx got it right. If you buy the generic form, diphenhydramine, it's very inexpensive and my docs say it's fine to take. This spring, we had tons of pollen. I could write my name on the table each day. I had a sore throat, runny nose and coughed constantly. Diphenhydramine helped somewhat.

Lol Carol, we are in same boat. Did testing for 3rd time, have shots after, the effects wear off after a year or two. Last time they had to wipe off after 2 min.

Post Edited By Moderator (hep93) : 6/30/2013 11:35:51 AM (GMT-6)

I have year round allergies to almost everything. I take zyrtec (ceterizine) because it is non-drowsy and I have never had any side effects from it. Before I was dx with cirrhosis my doctor had me take 2 X per day and sometimes I would get a very mild sore throat from it, but that is the only sx I ever had. Benedryl knocks me out but makes me twitchy. My GI has approved the zyrtec 1X per day for me. I was taking Allegra for a while and he said it was ok too, but it was more expensive so I switched back to zyrtec.

My docs have me taking omeprazole each morning, ever since I was diagnosed with ESLD. Like Connie, it's to make sure the other meds I take don't eat a hole in my stomach.