Allergy testing, read the same day
Allergy testing identifies what you actually react to, rather than what you suspect. At Allergenix that means skin prick testing for environmental and food allergens, blood testing where skin testing is not suitable, patch testing for chemical allergies, insect venom testing, antibiotic testing and delabeling, and supervised oral food challenges. Skin panels are run in the clinic during your visit and read with you the same day; blood results follow in one to two days.
Testing is run here rather than sent out, so the conversation about your results happens while you are still in the room.
Does this sound like your allergy testing so far?
- You have symptoms but have never been tested properly
- You were tested years ago and nothing has been rechecked since
- You have been managing on antihistamines without knowing what you react to
- Someone told you what you are allergic to without running a panel
What allergy testing here can involve
Skin testing panels
Run in the clinic during your appointment, so the results are part of the same visit rather than a second one.
Blood testing panels
Where skin testing isn't appropriate or a medication rules it out, blood work covers the same ground. Results come back in one to two days rather than the same visit.
Read the same day
Results are gone through with you in the room. Nothing is posted to a portal for you to interpret alone.
A written plan
You leave with what was found, what it means, and what happens next, on paper.
What happens during skin testing
Skin prick testing is the most common form of allergy testing and the one most people picture. It does not draw blood, and most people describe it as scratching rather than pain.
The panel goes on
A small drop of each allergen extract is placed on the forearm, and the skin beneath it is lightly pricked so a tiny amount enters the surface layer.
You wait
The panel is left in place. Where you are allergic, a small raised bump develops — like a mosquito bite.
It is read with you
The size of each bump is measured, against a control included so that your own skin reactivity can be accounted for.
That control is part of why testing needs to be read by someone who does this regularly.
- 47
- environmental allergens on the skin panel, plus unlimited via blood
- 82
- foods, on the food panel
- One
- visit, including the reading
The environmental panel covers the grasses, trees, weeds and molds relevant to central Iowa, along with dust mites and animal dander. The whole appointment, including the reading and the discussion of what it means, happens in one visit.
How to prepare
The one thing that matters is antihistamines. They suppress the skin reaction that testing depends on, and taking them beforehand can produce a falsely negative result across the whole panel.
Stop 7 days before
- Oral antihistamines — cetirizine, loratadine, fexofenadine, diphenhydramine and anything similar
- Nasal antihistamine sprays
Keep taking as normal
- Nasal steroid sprays, such as fluticasone
- Asthma inhalers
Some other medications also suppress skin test reactivity, including certain antidepressants — tricyclics can affect testing for one to two weeks — and some heartburn medications. Beta blockers are a separate matter: they do not interfere with the test result, but they can blunt the response to epinephrine if a reaction occurs, so we need to know about them before testing for safety reasons rather than accuracy ones. Do not stop any prescribed medication on your own. Send us your medication list when you enroll and we will tell you what, if anything, needs to change and for how long.
If stopping antihistamines is not realistic for you, say so. Blood testing measures the same sensitivities without the skin being involved, and it is unaffected by antihistamines.
Patch testing, and why it is different
Patch testing looks for a different kind of allergy altogether — and the difference is in the timing.
Skin prick testing
- Finds immediate reactions
- The kind that happen within minutes
Patch testing
- Finds delayed reactions
- Develop over one to three days
- Behind most cases of contact dermatitis
Applied
Panels of allergens are taped to your back and stay there for 48 hours.
First reading
You return to have them removed and read.
Second reading
You return again, because many reactions only appear at the later reading.
That second reading is why patch testing is a three-appointment process rather than a single visit.
It is the right test for rashes appearing where something touches the skin — under jewelry, at a waistband, on the hands, around the eyes — and for eczema that has not responded to treatment.
Common culprits
- Nickel
- Fragrance mixes
- Preservatives in cosmetics
- Rubber accelerators in gloves and shoes
- Hair dye
- Acrylics and fake nails
- Adhesives in fake eyelashes
Every fee is published before you book — what testing costs sets out the figures for this. When the answer turns out to be a program rather than a prescription, four different immunotherapy treatments become options to assist your symptoms. What a first visit involves walks through the visit itself, and Dr. Stanga runs all of it — the evaluation, the testing and the plan.
WHAT YOU LEAVE WITH
A clear answer on what you react to and a written plan you can act on. Follow-up is arranged prior to your departure.
Questions about allergy testing
Does allergy testing hurt?
Skin prick testing is a light scratch at the surface, not an injection. Most adults describe it as mildly uncomfortable rather than painful, and most children handle it better than their parents expect. Blood testing is a single standard blood draw.
Can children be tested?
Yes, at any age. Skin testing is done in young children routinely, and Dr. Stanga is board certified in pediatrics as well as allergy and immunology. For a child who cannot sit still for a panel, blood testing is an alternative.
How long do results take?
Skin test results are read about fifteen minutes after the panel is placed, and you go through them with the physician in the same appointment. Blood testing takes one to two days to come back and is discussed by phone or at a follow-up.
Do I have to stop my allergy medication before testing?
Antihistamines, yes — seven days beforehand. Nasal steroid sprays and asthma inhalers, no. Send your medication list when you enroll and we will confirm what applies to you.
Is a positive test the same as an allergy?
No, and this is the most important thing to understand about allergy testing. A positive result shows that your immune system has made antibodies to something. Whether that translates into an actual clinical allergy depends on whether you have symptoms when exposed. This is why testing is interpreted alongside your history rather than read off a sheet, and why panels ordered without a physician's interpretation cause so much unnecessary avoidance.
How much does allergy testing cost?
An Environmental Allergy Evaluation is $450 and a Food Allergy Evaluation is $425. Each is one price covering the consultation, the testing indicated for it and a written plan, so nothing is added afterwards for having your results explained. Full detail is on our testing cost page.
A different approach to allergy treatment starts here
Enrollment takes about two minutes. We'll confirm your visit within one business day and send everything you need beforehand.
