Allergies are over-reactions by your immune system to what are called allergens (such as dust, pollens, grass, molds, or animal dander) causing a reaction that may affect your lungs, nose, skin, eyes, cardiovascular system, or gastrointestinal tract.
The first step to ending your allergies forever is to find out exactly which allergens are causing your annoying and debilitating symptoms.
Initially you’ll require a broad skin test which is the best and quickest method of testing for allergic reactions to substances, or allergens, in the environment. The test consists of introducing small amounts of allergens into the skin and noting the development of a positive reaction, which consists of a wheal (swelling) and flare (surrounding area of redness). Tree, grass and weed pollens common to our region will be tested in addition to a variety of mold spores, household irritants like dust mites, animal dander and certain common foods.
Testing allows us to determine how likely it is that allergens play a role in your symptoms. Some conditions like non-allergic rhinitis, food allergy, infection or gastric reflux may produce symptoms identical to allergic rhinitis (hay fever) and can be difficult to distinguish without testing. Another important reason for testing is identification of your specific allergic triggers. Identifying your triggers is critical for serious allergy sufferers since one of the keys to effective treatment is AVOIDANCE of those triggers. Testing is also the first step in formulating an alternative therapy to traditional allergy medications called immunotherapy, which may offer effective long term suppression of allergic disease.
Your provider will use a skin test which involves applying several non-invasive plastic testing applicators to your back. The devices have no needles and do not break the skin. A total of 70 allergens are placed on your back via the plastic applicators as well as a small amount of histamine to make sure your skin is capable of producing a normal, visible skin reaction. Skin reactions are measured after 20 minutes. Itching, redness and wheals (small, itchy lumps) indicate sensitivity to a particular allergen or a normal response to histamine.
Immunotherapy, in particular Sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) and SubCutaneous immunotherapy (SCIT) is a natural allergy remedy that desensitizes your body to allergens by regular administration of gradually increasing doses of allergens in the area under your tongue, or under your skin, in order to induce tolerance to allergens responsible for your symptoms. As treatment progresses, your immune system learns to tolerate and then ignore these allergens, making your life much easier all year round and especially more enjoyable during the allergy season! Your doctor will tell you more about these treatment options after your skin test.
Once each year. Re-testing helps you and your Doctor monitor your improvement.