FIR TREE POLLEN ALLERGY
Key Allergens
Fir trees are in the Pinaceae family of plants, other trees in this family include the closely related pine trees, cedars and spruces.
Fir trees are wind pollinated, so can affect those who suffer with allergic rhinitis, the pollen is large in size so is considered to have low allergenicity.
The sap (commonly called balsam in terms of allergy) of some fir trees contain oleoresins which can cause allergic contact dermatitis.
The pollen season for fir trees is April to July, peaking in June.
Associated Syndromes
An allergy to fir tree pollen is sometimes associated with seasonal allergic rhinitis (hayfever).
A fir tree pollen allergy is also linked to asthma, rhinoconjunctivitis and atopic dermatitis.
The pollen of fir trees is not strongly linked to hayfever, but affects people more severely who do forestry work and woodworking.
Cross Reactivity
There is currently no cross reactivity associated with fir tree pollen, but they are closely related with cedar and pine trees.
Resources
Websites
Worcester Pollen Forecast
Allergy UK - Managing your asthma and your allergic rhinitis throughout the seasons
Science Direct - Douglas Fir Trees
Science Direct - Oleoresins
Pollen Library - Abies genus
Articles and Journals
A paediatric case of exercise-augmented anaphylaxis following bee pollen ingestion in Western Australia, 2022
Analysis of Protein Sequence Identity, Binding Sites, and 3D Structures Identifies Eight Pollen Species and Ten Fruit Species with High Risk of Cross-Reactive Allergies, 2022
Face masks suitable for preventing COVID-19 and pollen allergy. A study in the exposure chamber, 2021
Matching the Spatial Distribution of Upland and Lowland Pollen Grains with the Temperature and Humidity in the Columbia Basin, 2019
Tree pollen allergens—an update from a molecular perspective, 2015
Airborne Pollen Grains in Savastepe (Balikesir), 2007
Allergy to cypress pollen, 2005
A long-term study of winter and early spring tree pollen in the Tulsa, Oklahoma atmosphere, 1998
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