Skin Allergy Test:
Why Skin Allergy Test?
CLINICAL INFORMATION
Atopy is the genetic tendency to develop allergic diseases. Allergen is a substance that can cause an allergic reaction and hence the immune system produces antibodies called IgE antibodies in response to it. Thus allergen is a type of antigen that produces an abnormally vigorous immune response. When atopic people are exposed to allergens they tend to develop an immune response leading to allergic inflammation. Examples respiratory airway passage in the lungs causing asthma, skin resulting in allergic eczema or hives in case of urticaria, hay fever causing allergic rhinitis and conjunctivitis etc. 4 types of allergic reactions are hypersensitivity type-I reactions i.e immediate eg. anaphylaxis, hypersensitivity type-II reactions i.e cytotoxic, hypersensitivity type-III reactions i.e immune complex-mediated and hypersensitivity type-IV reactions i.e delayed hypersensitivity reactions eg. Tuberculosis. Allergens are found in dust, pollen, food like gluten, peanuts, milk, fish, egg, soya beans, mustard, sesame, ivy plant oil, grass, crustaceans (prawn, crab, lobsters etc), molluscs, animals, latex, insect sting, cockroaches, perfumes, household chemicals, dust mites, pets, pollen, insects, ticks, molds, foods, microbes (bacteria, virus, especially fungus eg. ringworm, jock itch, athlete foot etc), parasites (hookworm), in-born-errors of metabolism (eg. phenylketonuria), porphyrias (due to accumulation of some metabolites in the inherited disorder of heme metabolism), uric acid, lactose intolerance, medications (penicillin causing anaphylaxis, amoxicillin, sulfa drugs, smallpox vaccination) etc. An allergy occurs when a person prone to allergy reacts to substances in the environment that are harmless to most people.
Symptoms of allergies include sneezing, cough, tingling, itching sensation in the mouth, raised itchy red rash (hives – painful and itchy rashes), swelling of the face (swollen lip, tongue, eyes, face etc), sinusitis, difficulty in swallowing, wheezing, shortness of breath, lightheadedness, feeling dizzy, abdominal pain, chest tightness, vomiting, diarrhoea, sore throat, joint pain, erythema, tenderness near rash, collection of pus (pruritus) etc. Skin allergy is when the skin becomes irritated due to an immune response because exposure to any allergen is called an allergic reaction, which may be caused to the skin. Causes of skin allergy include contact with certain clothes (dye in the cloth or due to fabric i.e cloth fibres eg. wool, silk, diaper rash in children etc), latex, pets, chemicals, soaps, cosmetics, poisons, microbial agents such as bacteria, virus, particularly fungus (causing skin allergies eg. ringworm, jock itch, athlete's foot), parasites (hookworm), autoimmune disease induced allergy (psoriasis), hypersensitivity induced allergy (asthma) etc. Some of the common allergic conditions of the skin include atopic dermatitis or eczema, allergic contact dermatitis, urticaria rashes (dry, moist, bumpy, smooth, cracked, blistered etc), hereditary angioedema, psoriasis etc. The symptoms include the change in colour of the skin, eczema, allergic contact dermatitis, hives, angioedema, impetigo (in children), scaling or flaking of the skin, cracked skin etc. A skin allergy test also called a skin prick test, puncture or scratch test is a screening diagnostic test that checks for immediate allergic reactions to many allergens. This test is performed to identify numerous potential allergies to pollen, mold, pet dander, dust mites, foods etc. Additional tests include CBC, differential count, ELISA, IgE antibody test. Other tests include peripheral blood smear and skin scraped sample specimen for microscopic analysis, stool tests for cyst, egg, urinalysis, histopathology in biopsy specimen and SEM, TEM studies etc.
General Instructions:
Sample Requirement: Specimen - Blood sample collected from the vein or skin (as suggested by the Doctor). Test Preparation: None.
NOTE - Sample for specimen collections may vary based on the patient’s condition/cases according to the patient’s presenting complaints/signs or symptoms:
SPECIMEN REQUIREMENT (Special or Rare Cases) - As instructed and guided by Physician / Clinician / Pathologist / as per Laboratory’s requirements, according to procedures and protocols.
This Multi-Specialty Clinical Referral Laboratory RT DIAGNOSTICS provides precise and accurate tests with an extensive range of testing services to the medical centres to help in the diagnosis and identification of pathology in the test specimens for infectious diseases and also to evaluate the function of organ systems of the patient. It prevents further complications and helps to stabilize and restore health to near normalcy at the earliest without delay.
