Allergy is thought to be listed at number six of all the chronic ailments that is suffered by the people of the US and so the diagnosis and treatment of allergies is very important as the symptoms make it difficult to lead our life in a normal way.
It is better to get checked for allergies at the very beginning as the symptoms just appear.
A test is carried to understand the reaction of specific allergens such as foods, medications, pollen or molds to our body.
If the result comes out to be positive, this means that the person is allergic to the particular substance and he will show symptoms if he comes in contact with the particular allergen.
But the positive outcome of the result does not mean the person is allergic to the particular allergen.
It is therefore very essential to rely on the symptoms for the diagnosis and treatment of allergies.
The most common tests of allergy are patch test, prick test, blood and oral test.
Patch test is done to find out whether the person is suffering from contact dermatitis or eczema.
The allergen is applied for a certain period on the skin.
The allergen is kept for thirty minutes on the skin in case of contact dermatitis.
The result is positive if the skin turns red, gets swollen or is itchy.
The allergen is left for longer period to test for atopic dermatitis.
Prick test is the test which is the oldest and the most suitable and is carried on for more than hundred years.
After pricking, puncturing or scratching the skin with the help of a needle, the allergen is kept on the area for 15 minutes.
The test is positive if the skin appears to be red, itchy and swollen as that of a mosquito bite.
The test is done on the basis of the age, symptom and other features.
The test done is evaluated with positive and negative control.
Histamine is the positive control.
Salt water is the negative control which examines if there is any irritation on the area because of the prick that has been done by the needle.
If the outcome is negative and the person concerned has a history of allergy, intradermal test of the skin can be done.
This test is not reliable.
Diagnosis and treatment of allergies should be done properly.
Blood test or radioallegosorbent test is done to find out the number of antibodies of a certain allergen present.
But the result may not be reliable.
Oral test is done by giving the particular food in case the physician is unable to come to a conclusion after performing the above tests.
Diagnosis and treatment of allergies should be done very minutely.
Allergy can be treated by drugs like antihistamines, topical corticosteroids, decongestants, immunotherapy and bronchodilators.
These drugs fight the act or works against the histamine effect in allergy reactions.
Thus it is very difficult to do the diagnosis and treatment of allergies appropriately.