March is upon us, and spring allergies are on their way and are already in full swing for many parts of the country. While traditionally marked from March to May, spring allergy symptoms can begin as early as late January, as temperatures fluctuate and tree pollen levels increase. However, COVID-19 still plays a role in symptom confusion this season, and experts predict spring allergies will pack quite the punch for patients. 

Primary care physicians are at the frontlines of patient care. Therefore, it's essential to have digital tools, diagnostic testing, and effective treatments that address the root cause of patient allergy suffering to deal with the influx of patients turning to their general practitioners.

An article in the Tampa Bay Times explains why spring allergies start early and strong in the Southeast. Dr. Farnaz Tabatabaian is an allergist-immunologist at the USF Morsani College of Medicine in Tampa, states in the article that "How early it comes here really depends on how warm December is," Tabatabaian said. "And we just experienced a warm one." As a result, pollen is increasing and causing a dramatic spike in allergy and asthma suffering and symptoms. 

What can physicians do to address allergies in their practice?

This uncharacteristically harsh allergy season will soon converge with continued complications from COVID-19. Symptoms from the Omicron variant perpetuate patient confusion because the symptoms are more akin to allergy symptoms, including congestion, sneezing, headaches, cough, and sore throat. As a result, patients need to be tested for allergies more than ever, and primary care providers and non-specialty physicians are equipped with testing and treatment to meet the demand. Unfortunately, there are only 3,000 practicing allergists in the United States and more than 50 million allergy sufferers. The burden falls on already exhausted primary care and pediatric practices.

The AllergiEnd® System brings together a proprietary digital allergy assessment, FDA-cleared testing, and evidence-based immunotherapy treatments. As a result, we support primary care physicians with the tools they need to treat their patients while sustaining their practices with reimbursable revenue streams. Each step of the three-step system is reimbursable through proven CPT codes.

First, screen your patient's allergy symptoms, severity, frequency, and more with the easy-to-use digital allergy assessment. The physician dashboard provides robust yet easy-to-interpret insights into individual patient and population health.

Next, test your appropriate patients with confidence to confirm the findings from the validated screening. Our testing kits are FDA-cleared and thoughtfully designed for the primary care and pediatric settings. Features include air-tight locking kits, the proprietary asymmetrical orientation of applicators, and alphanumeric numbering.

Finally, our pharmacy creates patient-specific allergy treatments shipped directly to our clients if treatment is needed. We offer two forms of immunotherapy treatments, allergen immunotherapy injections or convenient sublingual drops.

What else can you do to support your patients?

Ensure that they understand the proper administration of Flonase and other nasal steroids. Over-the-counter allergy medicines are often a quick fix to alleviate patients suffering from environmental allergies. While these treatments do not treat the root causes behind allergy symptoms, they can help significantly reduce symptom severity and are often recommended as part of a comprehensive treatment plan. Many patients turn to products like Flonase, but they may not be administering them properly. Here's how to instruct your patients on the proper administration of Flonase. Additionally, read or listen to the AllergiEnd® immunotherapy information session and brush up on the benefits of immunotherapy for your patients. 

If you're a primary care physician and are interested in offering fast, virtually painless allergy testing to your patients, contact us today. A member of our physician-relations team will be happy to guide you through our process and product.