Allergy testing - 9 month old

[vvviola]

DD2 has been referred to get allergy tests done after we've noticed some reaction to dairy products. Our equivalent of a HV suggested it was probably more like an intolerance, but doc wants the tests done.

I'm just wondering what to expect. Appointment is for Friday morning, just before nap time so unfortunately she'll be a bit grumpy. Will I be able to feed her before/during/after? Any tips to make the process easier.

Thanks!

I can tell you what happened for us when DD was 7 months old and it might be similar. YOu won't be able to feed her during the test because they need to be sure what she is reacting to. In our case they did two kinds of tests, a skin prick test where they put the substance on her skin and then pricked it with a pin (on her forearm) and then we waited to see what happened. With the things she wasn't allergic to nothing happened. With milk, an enormous red circle spread around the pin prick. Then they also drew blood and sent that off for futher tests.

So you will get a result immediately on the skin prick but not on the blood test. They are likely to test her for other allergies too on the basis that few children are mono-allergic.

HTH and good luck.

That's great BlameIt, thanks.

I find it really hard when my DDs get tests, vaccinations etc, so it really helps to have an idea what might happen.

Other than the pin prick, which I imagine will cause much crying... was your DD bothered much by the test/reaction?

Hiya, we've got this tomorrow! Blood and skin prick tests. She'll be 9 months exactly. I am dreading it! I cried at her jags Will report back tomorrow evening and let you know what it was like.

DD was mostly unphased by the whole thing. By far the worst bit was drawing the blood (pin pricks nothing by comparison). It's not exactly fun but was such a relief to see someone and to get some control back (not knowing was the worst for me) that I think I blocked out anything else.

Hi both, just to add a bit of reassurance, my ds was skin prick tested at around the same age and tbh he hardly noticed them doing it. The pin prick is so small that i don't think it can really hurt, and the 15 mins we waited for any reaction to it was just spent dismantling the waiting room playing! I think at that age it's a far more scary process for you than it is for the child - good luck!

It was totally fine! Took longer than I expected and was hot and boring, as hospitals are.
A nurse did all the tests in the playroom of the children's ward. I distracted dd with a toy while she did the skin pricks and she didn't even flinch. Then put anaesthetic cream on her hands for the blood test which takes 30 mins to kick in - why have I never been offered this?! I hate blood tests!! Fed dd and read a couple of books while we waited - she didn't seem itchy but did keep trying to lick the cream of her hands!
Then blood tests - I let her play with my keys to distract her, she's obsessed with them but isn't usually allowed. The nurse tried one hand and couldn't get a vein because "she's really fat, isn't she!" so had to get a doctor to come and try the other hand, he managed no bother. She flinched a bit when the needle went in and did cry a little, but it was a protest cry rather than a pain cry. Not as bad as the jags!
So easy peasy! Although they were a bit disorganised and I have no idea what's happening next.
And she's allergic to egg, as well as dairy, which I'm a bit gutted about. No cakes in this house!

Belmo - glad to hear it wasn't too bad. It's a pain about the eggs & dairy though

If you are into baking (it seems that here in NZ everyone bakes, and I've caught the bug!) I came across a great book in my local library - the ultimate allergy-free snack cookbook. It's by Judi & Shari Zucker and has some interesting recipes, all of them egg, dairy, gluten & nut free

We're all set for tomorrow. The change in DD over the past week or so without dairy has been incredible, so I will be very surprised if there is no reaction at the tests.

Dd was tested at a.similar age. Skin prick test didn't bother her at all. Blood test was more unpleasant but I was allowed to feed her during it which helped to some extent.

If it's an intolerance rather than an allergy both tests will come back negative though. What kind of reaction has she had so far?

Well, it's all done.

Strong reaction to dairy and smaller reactions to egg and peanut.

She didn't mind the test itself, but she got very grumpy afterwards - like she was feeling the reaction kick in.

I wasn't expecting such a strong reaction - she'd had skin reactions, chronic congestion & stomach issues, but no dramatic allergic reaction.

Hi vvviola, glad its all over and hope your dd is feeling happier now.

The size of the skin reaction is just an indicator of how likely your dd is to be allergic, rather than the strength of any reaction she might have (which is unfortunately almost impossible to predict, as it depends on many other factors, ie your state of health at the time, whether you have just exercised, etc etc). So, a large weal to dairy shows that she is highly likely to be allergic - which you already know.

Sorry to hear about the egg and peanut too. Keep posting here for advice - my ds has egg and tree nut allergies and i've learnt loads of useful stuff!

CasaB - thanks for that. So the large reaction just means 'yes, she reacts to dairy' rather than 'she will react extremely strongly to dairy'. Phew. That's something at least, to know her reactions won't necessarily be very bad.

She's had a horrible grouchy day. To the extent that I ended up taking her to the out of hours doc because she was inconsolable, which is very unlike her. Luckily nothing appears to be wrong other than a grouchy day.

Appointment with the GP early next week to discuss what happens next.

The good news is that most children grow out of milk and egg allergy before they even start school. That's what I was told and it was true for my dd1. Only 20% ever grow out of peanut allergy but to be honest I find that one far less restrictive anyway. (dd1 had same allergies as yours)

Yep, there are loads of other factors that influence how strong a reaction might be. For a child, alcohol is obviously not a factor (hopefully!) but things like the amount of the allergen ingested, exercise taken, (which speeds the progress of the allergen into the system), whether the immune system is already fighting something else and so on will all have an influence on a reaction.

When ds was tested, his spt to raw egg was 13mm, which the dr raised an eyebrow at, and seemed quite surprised it was so big - way to put me at ease doc - but the only reaction so far has been hives where raw egg has touched his skin. He rubbed some egg white in his eye (i was baking, and he got some on the back of his hand) and it was red and watery, but that was the extent of the reaction.

Like lilbreeze says, it is common for children to outgrow egg and milk, so there is some hope for your dd. It may be that she is able to tolerate them in baked form before raw - ds only tested 3mm to baked egg for example, so i'm hoping we'll be able to introduce that soon. I hope your dd is on the mend and not feeling too grotty now