Talk to me about test types please...

[ReadingTeaLeaves]

hello all. My DS was diagnosed a while back with CMP, egg and nut allergies on basis of blood tests only. Have a friend with Dd with similar allergies, diagnosed through skin prick tests only.

My understanding (partly through reading posts here) is that both are not entirely reliable. My friend reckons skin prick must be more reliable and thinks my docs must be crazy not doing skin prick on my DS. Is she right? Is one more reliable than the other? If so, why have we not been offered skin prick? And how can I get access to these?

TBH I am sceptical about the nut allergy (not least because until he was diagnosed with it - at 6 mo) I had nuts around at home all the time, ate them all the time and generally would have had them on me often and I can't see why he wouldn't have had a nasty reaction at some point if he really had a nut allergy - or am I being naive?

bump

I work in the hospital and we carry out both skin pricks and blood test for allergies on children.

Both can be inconclusive but the likely hood if that happening is very very small.

In a skin prick test a small amout of an allergin is interduced under the skin and a small localised reaction will accare after 15 minutes looking a little like a nat bite if there is a positive allergy. - For this to work you must haave had no anti histermains (sp?) for at least 48 hours before hand this test can only be carried out for certin things i.e grass polin but not each and every tree and flower.

Blood test work on the bases that as long as you have had what you are being tested to at some point in the last 3 years (easly done if you think of all the additives in foods) your body will have (what are desribed as anit bodies) to the food, animal etc as it trys to fight off what it sees as an infection.

In a blood test you can check for as many different things as needed but takes about a mth to come back with the results.

Re the nuts you can be allergic to one type but not another and accourding to the staff i work with you can have a small reaction to them one time and a large reaction the second or third time the same goes for eggs.

Tbh i would trst your doctors word on these you can ask to get refered again by your doctor for a skin prick test if you really want one but it is up to him as to weather he feels its needed.

Where i work we do a skin prick test as an 'instant' guide and then do a blood test at the same time as a dubble checker, and although at times there are skin pricks that are hard to read i personally have never known a incorrect reading of a blood test.

HTH

Thank you all. I think I understand. Actually have tried DS on some cheese this week for the first time and have had no reaction whatsoever. Obviously won't be trying anything with peanuts (or other nuts) but am feeling quite good about the supposed milk allergy right now. Thanks again.