Allegra A Common Anti Allergy Drug

 More than 50 million Americans have allergies. Allergic rhinitis (inflammation in the nasal area) is the most common allergic disease, affecting at least 20 to 25 percent of the population. Allergies are the 6th leading cause of chronic illness in the U.S.

For allergy symptoms such as a runny nose, watery/itchy eyes, or sneezing that occur infrequently, most individuals can be treated successfully with an oral non-sedating antihistamine such as Loratadine (Claritin), Desloratadine (Clarinex), Fexofenadine (Allegra), or Cetirizine (Zyrtec) or an antihistamine nasal spray.

Allegra is a common anti allergy drug available by prescription. Fexofenadine or Allegra is an oral, "second generation" antihistamine that is used to treat the signs and symptoms of allergy that are due to histamine. It is similar to the other second generation antihistamines like the Loratadine (Claritin), Cetirizine (Zyrtec) and Azelastine (Astelin). Histamine is a chemical that is responsible for many symptoms of allergic reactions, for example, swelling of the lining of the nose, sneezing, and itchy eyes.

Fexofenadine blocks one type of receptor for histamine (the H1 receptor) and thus prevents activation of H1 receptor-containing cells by histamine. Unlike the first generation antihistamines, fexofenadine and other second-generation antihistamines do not readily enter the brain from the blood, and, therefore, they cause less drowsiness.

Sanofi-Aventis announced this month that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have approved Allegra(R), (fexofenadine hydrochloride), an oral suspension for the twice-daily treatment of symptoms associated with seasonal allergies in pediatric patients, 2 to 11 years of age, and for the treatment of chronic idiopathic urticaria in children 6 months to 11 years of age. This approval makes available a safe and effective seasonal allergy treatment option that is non-impairing to pediatric populations as young as 2 years old.

Allegra side effects in children 6 months to 5 years old were similar to placebo. Side effects varied by age. The most commonly reported Allegra side effects were: vomiting, pyrexia, cough, otitis media and diarrhea.
An advisory panel of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has voted overwhelmingly that three allergy remedies?Loratadine, Cetirizine, and Fexofenadine (Allegra) are safe enough to be bought at pharmacies and supermarkets without a doctor?s prescription. But the manufacturers of the drugs are resisting the idea.
Fexofenadine, marketed in the United Kingdom as Telfast and in the United States as Allegra, is available only on prescription in both countries. But you can check Allegra information available on various internet sites.

The three popular anti-allergy drugs marketed by Schering-Plough, Pfizer, and Aventis, are heavily advertised directly to consumers. The drug companies claim that they are better than the older drugs because they do not cause drowsiness.

Roger is an associated editor to the website http://www.allegrarelief.com . It is committed to provide visitors with complete information on allergy, Anti allergy Drug, Allegra Dosage & allegra effects. You can reach Roger at roger.sandler@gmail.com.