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Stephanie Dolsen

Laboratory medicine plays a valuable role in allergy and asthma management. Because of advancements in diagnostics, physicians and their patients now have a choice between a simple blood test and the traditional scratch test to identify culprit allergens.

While the scratch test may be a more common method, the allergy blood test has some distinct advantages in a primary care setting, especially if the patient is a small child. The blood test is ideal for young children who are apprehensive about the skin scratch procedure. It is also better for patients who have extreme eczema or other skin problems that make it difficult to read results during a scratch test. In some cases, where a patient may be extremely allergic and could have anaphylactic reactions, skin testing should not be performed because exposure to an allergen could be risky or even life threatening.

One quick blood draw of 6mL is all that is required for the allergy blood test, which detects multiple allergens in one tube. In comparison, the scratch test involves scratching or pricking the skin, placing the suspected allergen under the skin surface, and waiting for an allergic reaction. The entire process can take up to one hour in the physician's office. For many patients, the allergy blood test is considered a much easier and less painful alternative.

Statistics show that 1 in 3 primary care patients suffer from allergies, and that allergies and asthma are significantly on the rise worldwide. More than 50 million people suffer from allergies in the United States, and another 17 million people have asthma. Allergic disease is the fifth leading chronic disease in the country among all ages, and the third most common chronic disease among children under 18 years of age. There are many other staggering statistics readily available that echo the prevalence of allergies and the impact they have on our quality of life, as well as our healthcare system.

If left untreated, allergies can often lead to asthma or progress to other serious health problems such as allergic rhinitis, chronic sinusitis and pulmonary disease. According to the American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology, allergic rhinitis affects 20 percent of all adults and 40 percent of children, while chronic sinusitis affects nearly 37 million Americans. Approximately 16.7 million office visits each year are attributed to allergic rhinitis, and more than 18 million office visits to primary care physicians result in a diagnosis of sinusitis annually.

Allergic rhinitis and asthma are the two leading causes of absenteeism due to chronic illness. In addition, people suffering from sinusitis miss an average of four work days per year. Lost productivity combined with direct patient care, results in extremely high costs associated with allergic disease. If not identified and treated properly, allergies and chronic allergic conditions can account for millions of dollars in medical bills and millions of lost school and work days each year.

Early detection of allergens, either by a blood test or a scratch test, is critical to effectively manage allergies and their progressive symptoms. Allergy blood tests measure a patient's level of allergen specific immunoglobulin E (IgE), a protein the body makes in response to certain allergens. These levels are often higher in people who have allergies or asthma. The test provides quantitative determination of allergen specific IgE with excellent precision, accuracy and reproducibility. Therefore, results from the assay deliver valuable information about the severity of an individual's allergy to a specific allergen.

While it is important to promptly and accurately diagnosis allergens, it is just as important to rule them out to avoid inappropriate treatment. Allergy-like symptoms are not a conclusive indication of an allergy. In fact, a large percentage of patients who receive prescriptions for allergy medication don't have allergies. Specific data about a person's total and allergen specific IgE levels can guide effective treatment options.

References

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Stephanie Dolsen is the administrative director of Ascendant Medical Laboratory in Knoxville. Ascendent is a division of Molecular Pathology Laboratory Network, Inc. www.ascendantlab.com

Tags:

allergen specific immunoglobulin E, allergy, allergy blood test, allergy diagnosis, Ascendant Medical Laboratory, asthma, IgE, scratch test, Stephanie Dolsen

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