Test Service (Example)

Food allergy may occur in response to any food, and some people are allergic to more than one food. Food allergies may start in childhood or as an adult. All food allergies have one thing in common: They are potentially life-threatening. Always take food allergies -- and the people who live with them -- seriously. Food allergy reactions can vary unpredictably from mild to severe. Mild food allergy reactions may involve only a few hives or minor abdominal pain, though some food allergy reactions progress to severe anaphylaxis with low blood pressure and loss of consciousness. Currently, there is no cure for food allergies.

Having a IgE test result when investigating patients with suspected allergy opens up important new possibilities. Knowing a patient’s specific IgE antibody levels for an allergen to which they are sensitive increases the possibility of ranking how the different allergens affect their symptoms. Allergens found at low levels that today do not result in symptoms can nevertheless help predict future symptom development. Based on thousands of test results, the generic curve opposite indicates what an allergen-specific IgE antibody value can mean in relation to symptoms. Although a final diagnosis should always be based on the physicians’ overall picture of the situation, a general rule of thumb is that the higher the IgE antibody value, the greater the likelihood of symptoms appearing. Allergy is not a black and white ‘yes or no’ disease. Classifying patients as such is therefore an oversimplification and should be restricted only to the very first stages of an allergy investigation.

Anaphylaxis (pronounced an-uh-fil-LAX-is) is a severe, potentially life-threatening allergic reaction. Symptoms can affect several areas of the body, including breathing and blood circulation.Anaphylaxis often begins within minutes after a person eats a problem food or is exposed to an environmental allergen. Less commonly, symptoms may begin hours later. Up to 20 percent of patients have a second wave of symptoms hours or even days after their initial symptoms have subsided. This is called biphasic anaphylaxis.