Just got home with dd2 from the allergy clinic.

[SparklyGothKat]

The doctor requested the RAST test and a full IEG (??) test. She had the blood test done today and we have to go back in 6 weeks. They tested for peanut, tomato and dog/cat allergy. What is the RAST test tho and how does it work?

any-one??

sorry, sparkly, I don't know, but bumping.

RAST test
Just googled it

A RAST (radioallergosorbent) test is a blood test used to investigate increased sensitivity to a variety of food groups (eg eggs, cows' milk and nuts), house dust mite and animal dander (hair or fur). It is often used in the investigation of patients with atopic eczema.

A person can have a degree of sensitivity to all these things, but not all may be responsible for worsening of their eczema. This can make the results difficult to interpret.

It is most useful for children under five, particularly where there is a history of intolerance to certain foods. Avoidance of these foods can lead to a marked improvement of their eczema

This is taken as a simple blood test. Where the total IgE can be measured, the RAST measures the amount of the IgE antibody to a specific antigen.
The test can be performed to many antigens such as grass, dairy, yeast, cat and dog hair, house dust mite, nuts and many others.

Explanation:
The test shows what the body can react to. Usually a person who reacts to a substance, be it a nut or the house dust mite can describe symptoms.

For example, a person may react to cat hair by sneezing developing the weal and flare on the skin - this person knows that they are allergic to cats.

When the RAST is taken to the cat hair it may be high, but this only confirms what is already known by the sufferer of the allergy to cats. The blood tests in this case do not show anything that is already known.

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the doc said something about the RAST being able to tell if she has ever reacted to something, am a bit confused myself...