Allegens are things that may produce a pathological reaction in the human immune system — usually due to an excess response to something harmless in the environment or in foods. These are pollen, dust mites, pet dander, mould spores, certain foods (nuggets, milk, eggs and fish) and chemicals (nickel, cosmetics and latex).
For respiratory, food and touch allergens, they are divided by path of contact. pollen, dust mites, and spores of mold are breathed in allergens penetrate the body through the respiratory tract causing asthma and rhinitis. Proteins in foods (milk, eggs, peanuts, etc.) enter the body through the gut and cause allergic gastroenteritis or other intestinal problems. The principle of contact allergy applies to substances that contact the skin (nickel, cosmetics, medications) and might cause an allergic reaction in this region (contact dermatitis).
Inhaled allergens:
Contact allergens:
In most cases, IgE antibodies of the immune system work on the basis of allergic response. As allergens reach the body, IgE antibodies attach to them, and mast cells activate, exuding inflammatory mediators that cause local or systemic inflammation. There are two kinds of allergy: acute and chronic. In acute cases, a reaction can be acute, which manifests in itching, erythema and trouble breathing a few minutes after exposure to allergens; in chronic cases, the reaction can be more persistent and associated with tissue destruction.
Figure 1. Mechanism of allergic inflammation in type I hypersensitivity reactions. (Sources: González-de-Olano D, et al.; 2018)
It's a medical test procedure that helps diagnose allergy to a chemical or substance. It is primarily for physicians and patients to get a handle on the mechanisms of allergies, to come up with targeted prevention and treatment options.
Allergen testing methods have skin prick, patch, IgE antibody test, etc. And among these, specific IgE antibody testing is the most common testing procedure. It diagnoses whether a person is allergic to something by measuring IgE antibodies against the allergens in the blood. Also, there are other test like whole blood basophil activation test (BAT) etc.
Skin prick test (SPT): This is one of the most popular screening procedures where you poke a bit of allergen extract on the forearm skin and check if you get local redness and swelling. A positive outcome is generally a wheal or papule that is greater than 3 mm in diameter.
Specific IgE antibody level detection: Sensitivity of the patient to certain allergen can be detected by detecting serum concentration of specific IgE antibodies. It is a very specific and consistent method, and is suitable for patients who are unable to have skin tests.
Patch test: The patch test is an old technique for testing contact allergy. The alleged contact allergen is put on the patient's back skin and the skin response is measured 48 hours later. It can detect 20-100 contact allergens.
Standard series test: It is tested on a standard contact allergen series for detection of skin reactions to particular substances.
How it works:
With Creative Diagnostics Allergen Testing, everything is easy. Just tell us some basic facts such as:
The method that you want to try out.
Your allergen list, which ones you want to screen for.
An Expert from our team will get back to you to verify everything. Once the quote is approved, just send your sample to our lab and test result report will be shipped to your lab on the time.
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