The Allergy Testing Process

Allergy testing essentially entails having a blood or skin exam to determine which specific allergen or substance triggers an allergic reaction in an individual. Here at Advanced Allergy and Asthma of Virginia in Midlothian, VA, we will decide which allergy testing methods are best suited to your specific circumstances. Meanwhile, here’s what you can generally expect during testing:

Skin Allergy Tests

The most common test, the skin prick test, typically takes about an hour at our office and involves the following steps:

1. Disinfecting the testing site, typically on the arm or back, using alcohol.
2. Placing drops of various allergens on the skin, approximately an inch or two apart to allow for testing of multiple substances all at once.
3. Pricking the skin underneath each drop using a sterilized needle.
4. Examining the pricks after 15 minutes to check whether wheals, itchy, raised, and red patches, have formed. If so, this indicates that you’re possibly allergic to the specific allergen on that pricked portion.

In the event that you didn’t receive a positive reaction to the skin prick test but your doctor still suspects that you may be allergic to an allergen you’ve already been tested for, we may suggest intradermal allergy skin testing during your follow-up appointment.

Blood Allergy Testing

In some cases blood allergy testing may be the preferred method for determining allergies.  In that case you will be given a lab form to take to Labcorp or Quest to have blood drawn for this purpose.  The results were electronically sent to our office within a week. 

If You Have Any Questions on Allergy Testing, Don’t Hesitate to Call Us

Call  (804) 739-9005 to set an appointment at Advanced Allergy and Asthma of Virginia in Midlothian, VA.