allergy testing

allergy testing,

any one of the various procedures used in identifying the specific allergens. Such tests are helpful in prescribing treatment to prevent allergic reactions or to reduce their severity. The most common is allergy skin testing, which exposes the patient to small quantities of the suspected allergens. Factors considered in performing allergy tests include the medical history of the patient, the allergy history, the environment, and the diet. Individuals to be tested are usually instructed to discontinue the use of any antihistamines at least 24 hours before the test because these drugs can interfere with normal test responses. The most common kinds of allergy testing are the intradermal, scratch, patch, conjunctival, Prausnitz-Küstner, radioallergosorbent, and use tests.

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allergy testing

See Patch testing, RAST, Skin testing.

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Patient discussion about allergy testing.

Q. What happens when you get an allergy test? My doctor told me that I should have an allergy test done. I have had a friend have an allergy test done and she had a bunch of bumps on her arm. My doctor said it was just a simple blood test. Has the test changed? What should I expect? Is it painful?

A. Today, you can check allergy also with a blood test. What you check is the antibodies that your body manufactures. They extract antibodies from the blood and react it to all sort of allergens and see what happens. Here is a more elaborated explanation about it :
http://www.labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/allergy/sample.html

Q. How do I diagnose an allergy? I think I’m allergic to something. I’ve been having running nose, sneezing, and even problems breathing every once in a while. How can I find the cause?

A. There can be thousands of materials that you are allergic to. But usually people are allergic to the same things (cats, pets in general, type of foods and so forth..). what you can do is an allergy test- It’ll cover most of the usual things. Here is a video that explains it:
http://www.5min.com/Video/Allergy-Testing-9036