Nervous about allergy clinic appointment

[Dappymummy]

Dd has an appointment at allergy clinic. She is very allergic to fish confirmed by challenge test. I am not sure what the appointment will entail. They won't do a skin prick test will they? I am scared as reaction seems to be severe and even the smell seems to start a reaction. Can anyone reassure me please.

Obviously I don't know exactly what the appointment will include - you could ring and ask. They may talk you through what to avoid and how to treat a reaction.

If it is a skinprick test, these are very safe and minimal. They place a tiny droplet of pure extract on the forearm, and then make a very light scratch on the skin. They will typically test for a few things at the same time in the same way, along with some substances that they know will have a positive or negative reaction. Your child will then wait for 5-10 minutes and then the allergist measures the reaction. Afterwards it's treated with an antihistamine cream.

Please don't worry too much - skinprick tests can be a bit uncomfortable/itchy, but they are very safe and they are seen as the gold standard in testing reactions. Hope it goes well.

DS has nut and seed allergies and only every had blood tests.