Saturday, April 05, 2008

ABPA without steroids

A reader writes:

I am 48 years old female, and lived with asthma for the last 25 years. I am not under great control. I have had blood work done recently, and found out I have severe allergies. I have an IgE of 1700, my aspergillus allergen is 2.05 ku/l. I recently had a chest ct which showed nonspecific infiltrates with ground glass appearance. A sinus ct showed acute maxillary sinusitis. my physician says she is not sure of a diagnosis of ABPA, and is hesitant to treat me with steroids. In the past year I have been diagnosed with avascular necrosis of both hips, and my right knee as well as severe cataracts in both eyes. I was told probably from the use of steroids to treat my asthma. My concern is I never feel great, and why is this so hard to diagnose, and if I have ABPA what will ahappen if it goes untreated.

What types of steroid-sparing therapies do you use for ABPA (or asthma)?

1 comments - CLICK HERE to read & add your own!:

mark's tails said...

Dear Reader,

Although ABPA can sometimes be tricky to diagnose there are both major diagnostic features that take into account history, testing and imaging studies as well as minimal essential criteria needed to make a diagnosis.

If your physician is unclear as to the diagnosis or management it might be a good idea to seek a referral or second opinion at any nearby academic center or tertiary care center, especially given your past complications with steroids.

True ABPA, even when treated, can lead to long-term loss of lung function.