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ENT News & Events
Stuffed up? It may not be allergies
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February 2014
Dr. Dale Smith and Dr. Timothy Teel recently visited San Diego, CA for a week long course in reconstructive cosmetic surgery of the face. Dr. Smith and Dr. Teel regularly attend seminars hosted by the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery to bring patients the latest techniques for the best possible treatment and outcomes.
OKIE Magazine
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Head, neck cancers are on the rise
Smoking, drinking, HPV cause higher risk of oral, throat cancers
Click here to read the full article "Head, neck cancers on the rise."
All You Have To Do Is Say AHHH!!
April 5, 2014 Dr. Smith and Dr. Teel participated in the FREE Head and Neck Cancer screening in Lawton at the Cancer Centers of Southwest Oklahoma.
This event was opened to the public, and over 250 showed up to receive a free screening.
The Nose Knows
Only allergy sufferers can truly understand the perils of the season
BY KW HILLIS
STAFF WRITER KWHILLIS@LAWTON-CONSTITUTION.COM
In Southwest Oklahoma, thousands of Bradford pear trees bloom at the same time allergy sufferers are plagued with itchy red eyes, runny noses and sneezes. Despite the juxtaposition, the allergic reaction is probably not from the pear tree blossoms, said Dr. Dale Smith, otolaryngologist at his practice, the Allergy Ear, Nose & Throat Institute.
When it comes to allergies, trying to look at cause and effect may result in targeting the wrong cause.
“Bradford pear trees have pollens that are really heavy and big,” he said, explaining that it may actually be Mountain cedar pollen or another tree pollen that is causing the allergy.
The Mountain cedar pollen is released in what looks like a cloud of smoke and is so light it can travel up to 150 miles from the source tree.
Cottonwood is another scapegoat when it comes to allergy sufferers. “When people see the cotton flying around and they have allergy symptoms, they blame the cottonwood. It is probably the Bermuda grass under the tree. So it is not always what you see is what you get,” Smith said.
Despite the sneezing and coughing going on, early spring is not necessarily the worst time of year in Oklahoma for pollen-related allergies.
“It depends on what you are allergic to,” Smith said, explaining that there are only a few weeks in early winter that Oklahoma doesn’t have some type of pollen causing allergies.
But it may not be pollen causing the clogged sinuses and itchy eyes. There are many types of allergens out there year-round that can affect some people including animal dander, mold spores, dust, certain foods and more. Some allergies from one source such as pollen can interact or accelerate the reaction from another related allergen source such as food, he said.
Allergy-related deathsAllergies can trigger asthma, which can be life-threatening. In 1993 for those 25 and younger, there were 200,000 hospitalizations and 375 deaths due to asthma, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America’s website,www.aafa.org.
Even without the complications from asthma, allergies can be lifethreatening. Some people can experience severe anaphylaxis reactions to some allergens.
“Anaphylaxis is a serious allergic reaction that involves more than one organ system (for example, skin and respiratory tract and/or gastrointestinal tract), can begin very rapidly, and can cause death,” according to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the National Institutes of Health.
“I had two people who died from drinking chamomile tea ... chamomile is related to the ragweed family,” he said, explaining that when those people drank the tea during non-ragweed season, they didn’t notice too much reaction. But both people had allergies to ragweed. When they drank the tea during ragweed season, it caused them to go into anaphylactic shock.
When someone has been diagnosed with a severe allergy to a certain substance that could cause them to go into anaphylactic shock, they are prescribed an epinephrine or adrenaline autoinjector pen to keep with them at all times because there isn’t much time to reverse the reaction, Smith said.
In these two cases, the individuals did not know that the tea would further stress their immune systems and increase their reaction to ragweed.
Ragweed is the bane of many people across the U.S. with allergies and asthma and rightly so, since “one healthy ragweed plant can release up to one billion pollen grains. It is estimated that 1 million tons of ragweed pollen are produced each year in North America,” according to the University of Tulsa Aerobiology Laboratory, pollen.utulsa.edu/ragweed.htm. The ragweed season in Oklahoma lasts about 2 ½ months usually beginning in late August.
Those who have never actually found out what is causing their allergic symptoms can be at risk for more severe reactions from unusual sources — a cross-sensitivity reaction.
What am I allergic to, really?
People finally come to an allergist when they “get tired of the symptoms,” Smith said. People try to self-medicate with over-thecounter medicines or even Sudafed, which now requires showing a license because of the restrictions on the amounts of products with pseudoephedrine or PSE that can be purchased in Oklahoma. But self-medicating without knowing what really is causing allergic reactions can be difficult and can actually mask the real problem.
One result of the products containing PSE being put behind the counter or taken off the market is that more allergy suffers are coming in to find out how they can relieve their allergy symptoms instead of masking them with OTC products that didn’t solve the issue, he said.
In the past, testing for allergies involves dozen or hundreds of small needle pricks under the skin, at Smith’s office a blood sample is used instead.
There are substances that people aren’t really allergic to, rather they cause chemical sensitivities — like tobacco smoke and perfumes, he said, explaining that tobacco smoke is made up 200 different chemicals. With chemical sensitivities, “avoidance is a good thing.”
The supplements that people take can also be a problem.
“Some come in and they have been taking 15 to 20 supplements,” he said. “They think they are OK to take because they are natural. Arsenic is natural. Supplements are not FDA-approved and may interact with each other. I see it all the time, someone comes in not feeling well — I stop all their supplements and they start feeling better.”
Once the person is better, he said, if they want to add supplements, he advises them to add them one at a time over a period of time to see how they react.
As a surgeon, some of the supplements can cause problems during surgery.
“If I am operating on them, I have to get them off their fish oil and Ginkgo biloba too — they thin blood.”
If a person is diagnosed with food allergies, the foods can be put into various categories — ones that can be eaten every few days, eaten anytime and foods that should never be eaten to lower the chances of allergy symptoms.
“Once you have the right diagnosis, the treatment becomes easier,” Smith said. Avoidance of the known allergen, especially if it is a food, animal dander or other nonpollen item, can be one of the easiest methods.
One technique that can reduce or even block the allergic reactions to a substance — although it is not a cure — is immunotherapy, which activates the immune system by putting a small amount of the substance in the body over a period of time.
“Immunotherapy can be done in our office. It is a three-year course of a shot once a week under the skin ... builds blocking antibodies,” Smith said. Unfortunately, immunotherapy it is not FDA-approved for those who have an anaphylaxis response to an allergen.
Other ways to keep allergies at bay include staying away from tobacco smoke whether first-hand or second-hand smoke, Using hepa filters and replacing them on a regular basis, can also help tamp down some allergies.
The bottom line is making sure to treat for the real allergy.
“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result... that is what happens when people treat themselves for what they think is wrong with them, without really knowing what is wrong.”
Instead of trying to treat what she thought was a post-nasal drainage problem, a woman came into his office two weeks ago, the same day as this interview.
“It was a cancer on the back of her tongue. The visit probably saved her life,” he said.
May 2013
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Warrenville, IL (April 3, 2013) – Phonak introduces the new Phonak Audéo Q and Phonak Naída Q portfolio, based on the Quest platform launched six months ago. Both product families feature the unique Binaural VoiceStream Technology™ and will be available in the market as of today. Phonak Audéo Q enhances the spontaneous acceptance and enables more signal, less noise and better understanding in more listening situations – even with open fit. The new Tinnitus Balance Portfolio – available with Audéo Q – offers hearing care professionals essential tools to support a variety of tinnitus management philosophies. The Naída Q product family delivers premium performance for people with severe to profound hearing loss. |
April 2013
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Dr. Dale Smith is one of a select few Patients' Choice Award honorees to have earned this achievement. Only a small number of physicians earn the Patients' Choice Award even once. Many fewer have earned it 5 years in a row. This truly indicates that Dr. Dale Smith is one of America's favorite doctors. Congratulations Dr. Dale Smith on this achievement! |
December 2012
AENTI participates in mission to support underprivileged children
The Allergy Ear Nose and Throat Institute supports the annual mission Holy Presents. The purpose of the Holy Presents mission is to provide Christmas gifts and necessities to underprivileged children in the United States.
This mission takes place in Rio Grande Valley, Texas. Holy Presents sells oranges to pastors, churches, and other organizations to raise money to support the underprivileged children. The profits earned from the sale of oranges are used to buy presents and necessities (toothpaste, soap, food, etc.) for the children. The Allergy Ear, Nose & Throat Institute, along with First Baptist Church of Elgin, supported the Holy Presents mission by purchasing over 1,200 pounds of fresh oranges.
Through this mission, First Baptist Church of Elgin, with support from the Allergy Ear, Nose & Throat Institute, was able to deliver over 300 boxes of wrapped presents and Bibles to the children of Port Isabel in Harlingen, Texas, one of the most economically needy areas in the United States.
On the return trip, our trailer comes back to Elgin loaded with 1,200 pounds of fresh oranges for the community. The oranges have been picked fresh off the trees in the Rio Grande Valley within the last week. We are happy to share with you some of the oranges from the Holy Presents mission.
Merry Christmas,
Allergy Ear, Nose & Throat Institute
