Allergies Often Misdiagnosed
A
new study finds that almost two-thirds of those who take allergy drugs
don’t need them. Dr. Sheryl Szeinbach of Ohio State University
studied 265 patients taking allergy medications. The study found that 65
percent did not actually suffer from allergies. The consequences are that
people who are misdiagnosed can waste as much as $80 a month for the
prescription drugs, taking medicines they don’t need. Additionally, side
effects from these medications can also be a factor while the medications
these people are taking fail to relieve the real symptoms.
Dr. Beth Corn, an allergist at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York
says, “It's very obvious to anyone who practices in the field of allergy
that there are many patients who walk around who are misdiagnosed.”
Dr. Corn tries to explain, “There’s also an incredible influence for
marketing where patients will watch television and they’ll see
commercials or they’ll be on a bus and they’ll see ads for medications
and they want these medications.”
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