UPDATE: Our nightmare with SINGULAIR has not ended! After readin...

The goal of montelukast was to reduce inflammation due to eosinophils.

Ann Allergy. 1992 Mar;68(3):286-90.Links
Eosinophils in asthma.Busse WW, Sedgwick JB.
University of Wisconsin Medical School, Madison.

Eosinophils, a prominent feature of asthma, are found in increased numbers in the circulation and sputum, usually in relation to the severity of asthma. As a consequence of these clinical observations, investigators now speculate that the eosinophil has a central role in the pathogenesis of asthma. Recent evidence has begun to confirm these speculations. The allergic reaction of the airway to antigen and the development of the late asthmatic reaction have provided a clinical model to study asthma and the contribution of eosinophils to bronchial reactivity. In the late asthmatic reaction, airway eosinophilia occurs. Through a series of independent observations, the following eosinophil-related events have been noted with the development of late asthmatic reactions. With either laboratory or natural exposure to antigen, eosinophilic chemotactic factors are released. Although the sources of eosinophil chemotaxis are multicellular, this is an early step in the attraction of eosinophils to the airway. As this process is initiated, a series of events occurs to cause eosinophils to arrive in the airway and promote obstruction, injury, and bronchial hyperresponsiveness. These steps include eosinophil migration through the vascular endothelium, upregulation of eosinophils (characterized by a change in cell density), adhesion of eosinophils to airway epithelium, and release of eosinophil toxic products. This presentation will review some of the eosinophil-dependent factors that can cause asthma. Furthermore, the eosinophil may be a good target for future therapeutic interventions.

For some people, eosinphils were suppressed. For some reason, in some people the opposite happens and these patients produce high levels when they never produced them before. So the side effects are very strange and possibly key into the fact that there are so many genetic variations in HLA.

In other words, Singulair plays with no many different genetic variations that it is like Russian roulette.

I am a mold person. Mold is a nasty allergy. Pancake mix in a box that has grown mold spores could put a mold person in the hospital.

I am sorry to hear about your son. It is really scary to think STOPPING this medication can cause problems! My daughter was put on Singulair for only allergies. It has been 11 days since she has been off. So far no breathing trouble. I pray she doesn't begin to have breathing problems. What does your doctor say about this? Did all of your son's side effects go away after stopping Singulair? This drug keeps amazing me. When you think you have heard it all something else pops up. I hope you will report this new development to the FDA. This drug has the potential to do a great deal of harm to so many people.

Thanks. I am just a wreck now! This is more than any 3 year old should be forced to deal with. Besides his life threatening food allergies and worring when he will have to get an epi shot he now is scared to death b/c we have to put a mask on his face so he can suck in some steroids so he can stop coughing so hard and breath! This isn't fair! The Dr. we saw today doesn't know what happened with the Singulair and my husband took him today. All they care about is getting him on another few drugs. We probably racked up a couple thousand in the last 24 hours on all of this! I hope this hasn't damaged him for the rest of his life. I am praying that it will pass but it probably isn't the end of this nightmare. I'll keep you posted. So far after his breathing treatment it's quiet. Time will tell.

My son had his sinuses finally drain on the 9th day. He had alot of phelgm. He was also on it for allergies. When the allergies would kick in he would get URI which would then result in the wheezing and croup like cough. Last couple of days I have been giving him mucinex to help thin mucus (per allergist prior to coming off ) Now his nose is mostly clear but he is still clearing his throat so Im keeping eye on him.

Montelukast was invented as an alternative to constant steroid use for the attack of the eosinophils. Meaning that they were hoping to avoid the attacks rather than suffer the damage done by eosinophils. I have no idea how the concept got mutated to include one or two acute episodes and they demand that you use Singulair. But even more bizarre is using it for seasonal allergies. So all of these research YES men have convinced them that this is a safe product- one size fits all. No, not hardly.