Allergies and the Symptom Threshold

Allergies affect as many as 30% of adults and 40% of children. Reactions to allergies can cause coughing, sneezing, itchy eyes, a runny nose and a scratchy throat. In severe cases, allergic reactions can include rashes, hives, low blood pressure, breathing trouble, asthma attacks and even death.

For most patients, the causes of allergic symptoms are many allergens, not just one. The level at which a patient’s allergic sensitivities cause symptoms, called symptom threshold, is reached when multiple allergens add up to create a cumulative effect. Managing a patient’s symptoms is about knowing his or her IgE sensitivities—even the ones that are hidden. The key to keeping a patient symptom-free is understanding the cause of his or her allergic symptom threshold via ImmunoCAP IgE testing.

IgE Blood Testing

Blood tests are helpful when it comes to allergy testing. Specific IgE blood testing can help to identify sensitization to allergic triggers in patients, without the need for a skin prick test.

Regional Respiratory Profiles from BioReference®

BioReference® offers ImmunoCap regional respiratory profiles to help pinpoint specific allergens in a patient’s local area to aid in targeted therapy, and to help identify areas patients should avoid where certain allergens are more prevalent. Regional test profiles include sensitization testing for mites, epidermal, food, grass, insect, mold, tree and weeds, and are offered for the following territories:

• Region 1: Northeast Region (Includes: CT; MA; NJ; NY; PA; VT; ME; NH; NY; RI)
• Region 2: Mid-Atlantic Region (Includes: DE; MD; VA; DC; NC)
• Region 3: Southeast Region (Includes: GA; SC; N. FL)
• Region 4: South Florida Region
• Region 10: TX and OK
• Region 11: Mountain Region: Includes (AZ, ID, NM, WY, CO, UT)
• Region 12: South CA, and AZ Desert Region
• Region 13: South CA Coast Region
• Region 14: Central CA Region
• Region 17: North CA and Pacific Northwest Region (Includes: Northern CA; OR; WA)

Food Allergy Profile

Blood tests are helpful when it comes to allergy testing. Specific IgE blood testing can help to identify sensitization to allergic triggers in patients, without the need for a skin prick test. With ImmunoCap Allergen testing offered by BioReference®, healthcare providers can gain the necessary information to develop a dietary management plan and improve a patient’s quality of life. The multicomponent food allergy profile can assess whether a patient reacts to common food allergies, including almond, cashew, hazelnut, walnut, peanut, sesame, cod fish, salmon, tuna, scallop, shrimp, milk, soybean and wheat.

Egg, Milk, and Peanut Component Profiles

In addition to abnormalities in the general food allergy profile, component testing looks at specific egg, milk, and nut proteins to determine how likely a patient is to react to baked or raw products.

• Egg: 70% of children with egg allergy do not react to baked egg. Egg Allergen Component testing can help healthcare providers determine the likelihood of reaction to products baked with egg, such as muffins or cookies, as well as inform the likelihood of allergy persistence. The profile includes testing for egg white, ovalbumin and ovomucoid proteins.
• Milk: 75% of children with cow’s milk allergy do not react to baked milk. Milk Allergen Component testing can help healthcare providers determine the likelihood of reaction to baked goods, such as cookies or cheese pizza, as well as the likelihood of allergy persistence. The profile includes testing for cow’s milk, alpha-Lactalbumin, beta-Lactoglobulin and casein proteins.
• Peanut: 77.6% of patients sensitized to peanut may not be at risk for a systemic reaction. Peanut Allergen Component testing can help healthcare providers define the likelihood of a systemic anaphylactic reaction and determine the need for prescribed precautions. The profile includes testing for peanut, Ara h8, Ara h9, and Ara h1, h2 and h3 proteins.

Test Benefits

• ImmunoCap profiles can improve the ability to assess risk for systemic allergic reactions, leading to more targeted treatment and/or guidance for specialist referrals.
• Full color report clearly identifies patient’s sensitization to each specific allergen.
• Treatment management tools (such as previous test results and highlighted abnormalities on the test report) promote patient engagement and treatment compliance.