Medical Treatment and Autism: Tips For Success

3 Things You Need To Know About Allergy Skin Testing

If you have been getting a runny nose that doesn't seem to stop, and your eyes seem to always be watery and irritated, you may have allergies. Instead of taking over-the-counter medication all the time to battle your allergies, it is time to figure out exactly what you are allergic to. In order to figure out what you are allergic to, you need to see a board-certified allergist. They will work with you to figure out what is causing your allergies.

Run Through Your History

The first thing that will happen when you meet with a board-certified allergist is that they will run through your history. They will ask you about when you experience your allergy symptoms and what seems to make them worse. Anything that you can remember can be helpful, even if the information may seem mundane.

For example, if you notice your allergy symptoms seem to get worse in the spring when everyone is cutting the grass, maybe you are allergic to grass, or if you notice your allergy symptoms are worse when you are inside, maybe you are allergic to dust mites.

The things that you observe can be helpful to your board-certified allergist.

Allergy Skin Test

Once the board-certified allergist runs through your history, they will more than likely move forward with an allergy skin test. This is one of the most common ways to test for allergies, as it is a quick and affordable medical test.

With an allergy skin test, specific allergen drops are put on your skin or your skin is pricked with the allergen. Then, the professional giving the test marks where the allergen was placed. After that, they will observe and see if your skin reacts to each specific allergen.

If your skin gets red and raised, that generally means that you are allergic to that substance.

Allergy Blood Tests

Allergy skin tests often provide one with all the information they need to figure out what they are allergic too. However, sometimes, a little more testing is needed. In that case, your doctor may suggest giving you an allergy blood test.

An allergy blood test will test for specific allergens in your blood. It can take a few days to get the results of an allergy blood test back.

If you suffer from allergies throughout the year, it is time for you to figure out what is causing your allergies. A board-certified allergist can have you get an allergy skin and blood test to determine what exactly you are allergic to so that you can develop a more targeted approach to treating your allergies.


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