I am a 47-year-old female and my story began five years ago. I was an extremely healthy person and then one day I had to have my gallbladder removed because it was not functioning properly. It turned out to be a traumatizing surgery where my stomach stopped for a week and it took about eight weeks to heal.

To make a long story short I caught a horrific case of Mononucleosis a few weeks after the surgery that put me in bed on and off for about eight months. Once the mono was finally over the last five years I have started showing more allergy-like symptoms to foods and medications.

I was diagnosed with MCAD a couple of months ago at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona. I need any help with two problems. I will get treatment from a doctor as soon as I can find one. It looks like flying to Boston might be my best solution because I have tried doctors all over my area and they do not have a clue.

Problem 1: For about three years I have had a sinus infection every few weeks. This last infection lasted four months and I had to have IV antibiotics the last two weeks of it and then even with steroids it still ended up triggering my disease so bad I landed in the hospital for most of that week. Anybody else out there with this problem and what did you do to stop them? I have already had three sinus surgeries.

Problem 2: I know all the drugs: Zyrtec, Claritan, Allegra, Singulair, and on and on. A lot of the drugs are ruled out for me because I cannot have any gluten or lactose in my drugs. Not even a drop or it will trigger my disease. The rest of the medications I seem to take also trigger my disease. The only drugs I have taken that do not trigger my disease are antibiotics (thank goodness - or I would be dead). Does anybody else have this problem and what did they do? I have tried Gastrocrom but even have trouble with reactions to it and if I can get it work it will take weeks or probably months.

The only foods I can eat without a reaction are meat, potatoes, vegetables, and a few fruits. Any advice from anybody would be appreciated.

Hi Glenda,

  Have you tried any nasal sprays to help your sinuses?  You probably have tried them all, but just thought I should ask.

  If your reaction to Gastrocrom was severe, it may be that you shouldn't take it at all.  If it just caused a little mild stomach upset, dizziness, or a little nausea, it may be that you might tolerate it if you start slower.  I started with less than 1/2 a vial in a whole glass of water (12 oz) and worked up from there.  Some people start with a teaspoon in a pint of water.  It didn't take long to help me once I got up to a more therapeutic dose.

  Do you also have true allergies?  Something like that can trigger sinus infections because it triggers swelling.  Do you use nasal rinses?  I use SinuRinse, the one with the squeeze bottle and saline packets, and it seems to help a lot.  I'm sure they've tested you for a nasal fungal infection.  I've found that taking oral probiotics has been very helpful.  There are some that are gluten and lactose free.

  Some things can be nasal irritants without being true allergies, such as dust or mold.  There are websites where you can see how to allergen-proof your house and especially your bedroom.  This will also help with mast cell triggers that aren't true allergens.  If you think this might be a possibility, PM me and I can give you other suggestions.

  Hope you feel better soon!

Thank you so much for the replies. The main thing your replies have given me is hope that one day I may be able to end the infections and have my disease under control with medications.

Thanks for the tips on Gastrocrom. The doctor that gave me the prescription was only following the Mayo recommendations and he didn't know anything about it. I am a nurse so we looked up the dosage together and started using it slowly. It wasn't a severe reaction. It seemed like Pam said that I was just messing up my fish tank with all sorts of little weird symptoms but I stopped it until I could learn that what was happening was okay. I will restart it now that I know that seems to be normal. I will even start it slower than I did before.

Thanks Pam for the info on Salicylates and dye colors. I had always looked at those colors and wondered if they could possibly be triggers. I still have several I haven't found. So I will pay closer attention to the ingredients in medications and food and see if I can find more of my triggers.

Thanks Joan and Doozlygirl for the sinus information. I don't have any true allergies. I do sinus rinses twice a day with Gentamycin. I heard of nasalcrom a few days ago and will pursue getting it. I think my sinus infections will go away once I get my disease under control because my body is always inflamed right now and I think that comes out through my sinuses. I am glad to hear someone else had the same problem and eventually got it under control. Thanks for the jump start on what medications I could possibly use and I will also consider adding a probiotic.

I can tell it was a very wise decision to join this internet site. Thanks Again. Glenda

Hi Glenda

I am sorry you have been so ill.  I am glad you have a diagnosis so now you can focus on getting better!

Like you, I react to minute amounts of certain ingredients (triggers), whether in foods or in medications. A few granules will cause a reaction!

The above advice is excellent.  There is a lot of wisdom,  study and experience in what they have shared.

I have one thing to add.  You mentioned you got worse on steroids.  I ended up in the ER due to the lactose monohydrate in the 10mg. tablet of prednizone! For me,  lactose is lactose no matter what form it is in.  (It took a long time to figure that one out.)

You may also want to have your commercial meds compounded.....even your antibiotics could be adding to your inability to get better (IMO).  For me, getting as many meds as I could in their 'purest' form has been a huge help!  This can decrease the "load" of triggers.

We wish you the best!