Hi All,
I was hoping that someone would be kind enough to explain a few things, i have had my results back from G.P & now waiting for appointment with cons. There are a few big words that i havent a clue what they mean, was hoping if some scientfic person could put them into plane english for me
Phadiatop??
D.Pteronyssinus??
D.Farinae??
Cladosporium herbarum??
Latex Grade 2??
I know i should wait untill appointment with cons but how long will that be??
LMC
D.Pteronyssinus and D.Farinae are the proper names for dust mites, Cladosporium herbarum is an indoor mould, Phadiatop is a mixture of airbourne things like birch pollen, Latex is used in condoms and disposable hospital gloves. A grade 2 response is weakly positive.
Ok thanks for explaining that. Im going to make an appointment on monday with cons.
Lmc
One other thing is that if you test positive your reaction/ IgE is graded 1, 2, 3 or 4. 1 being milder/ lower IgE than 4. For example i have a grade 2 reaction to wheat but a grade 4 to pollen.
Hope that helps!
How did you get on with cons LMC? Did they enlighten you on the ins and outs of your positive tests? Latex is also in a lot of clothes, especially ones with elastic. How long did it take for your results to come? I have been waiting 6 weeks for mine and even phoning the cons secretary hasn't sped them up.
Ive not had appointment with cons yet, that next friday, so will let you know how i get on nxt week. I hoping that he is going to do a skin prick test. I had the RAST test done, which they took blood for that took about 3-4 wks.
I have to stop antihistimes 3 days before which im not looking forward to, Its weeds this time of yr tho isnt it??
Lmc
Finally got my allergy test results today. They didn't tell me anything I didn't already know but never mind. I suppose at least I know I still need to beware of wasps. My general levels were riding very high so I am obviously reacting to something most of the time but tests can't tell me what!
Hi,
What test did you have, i had the RAST test, where they took blood, the results that i had back were quite simple it said eg grasses = positive then listed the ones i react to, i also react to trees & weeds which explains that i suffer from h.f from march/april - spet/october time. My cons has suggested to my gp that im desensetised nxt yr, i should find out more next friday when have appt with cons. Has any one else been desensitised what did they do & did it work??
LMC
Angela, it took a long while for my immunologist to hit on what I'm allergic to as there didn't seem to be any clear link between the things I had reactions to. It was eventually worked out that I'm allergic to preservatives (synthetic and natural) and colourings amongst other more usual things like animal fur, pollens etc. It could be worth asking your immunologist about the likelihood of this with you, but I urge you not to elimate preservatives and colourings from your diet without the guidance of your immunologist and their dietician as it is a major undertaking. It is impossible to eat out, have takeaways, eat ready meals, or buy anything without scrutinising the packaging. It is possible though so if your doc works out that this could be what you're reacting to then do be reassured. If it is suggested that these might be your allergies then I'd be more than happy to talk about it with you in pm.
Becky.
I'm not sure that where I went is as good at allergy testing as some places. They did mainly skin prick testing which on ly showed positive to dust mites everything else was negative eg grasses, deciduous trees but then he said they only test for a selection of grasses, not specific ones and the ones I might be reacting to may not be in that particular test. I know I react to pampas grass, ferns, fir trees - particularly Christmas trees, and some animal furs and feathers, lilies, hyacinths, freesias and narcissi. He was more interested in what I didn't know but still didn't test for very much. The blood tests were for the IgE's for wasp and bee stings and were supposed to be for lily and hyacinth as well but they no longer do them. I have been offered the possibility of dessentisation to wasp stings in view of having a ful blown anaphylactic reaction 10 years ago and my reaction levels haven't reduced but the chance of having a major anaphylactic reaction while undergoing the treatment for me is quite high because of my general allergy levels being so high. What they do is inject you with a miniscule amount of the substance, gradually increasing every week for about 6 weeks and then every month for 1-2 years until you are tolerating a dose well above the dose that you would normally react to without any reaction at all. does that make sense? Hope that helps explain it a little bit.
Ange xxx
Hi again Angela, yes that makes perfect sense, and I also know how awful anaphylaxis is as that's what my allergies do to me - scary and most annoying, to say the least.
It may well be worth you asking for a referral to a specialist immunologist. It could take a long while to get the referral through but really if you've had anaphylaxis before then they shouldn't argue with your request. I think it took almost a year to get my referral through because there's such a national shortage, but we have the Regional Specialist Immunology and Allergy Institute at one of my local hospitals so I was lucky in the end. I think that in specialist allergy departments they can do RAST tests for just about anything, so they can be a fair bit more extensive than skin pricks, as well as completely itchy free (and safer if you're prone to anaphylaxis).
Don't know if any of that helps at all, but hope you get something sorted and your allergies can be identified. it does make a real difference to the quality of life when you know what it is that you need to avoid. Although it has its own stresses at least you can minimise the risks.
Becky.
My Results
Finally got my results off the consultant. I'm not allergy to the Sandie dog so that was fantastic news. I'm allergic to grass pollen though, so they've now put antihistamines on my repeat prescription as he thinks I need them all year round. I usually just take them in the summer.
Somehow the results of the mould tests didn't materialise so I had to have some more blood taken (the nurse went in the exact place I had my canula in for my drip when I was in hospital a couple of weeks ago and it hurt more than usual and I'm sporting a lovely bruise as well as a reaction to the tape they use to stick the cotton wool too!). I get the results in a couple of months when I go back to the hospital.
Hi BeckyG, I did see a consultant immunologist and i only had to wait 3 months for the appointmant. He didn't see much point in skin prick testing for what I know I am allergic to and some of the blood tests don't seem to be available anymore. My hubby and I found the results helpful that we did get but I don't think work are quite so satisfied. I have got another occupational health visit on the way. Fortunately the boss has been too busy this week so it will now have to wait until after my 2 week holiday from work. I get a bit fed up with the regular meetings that I have to have and am now feeling pressured to cut my hours on a temporary basis (all because I fell asleep in my luncbreak once last week and was late back to work) but will wait and see what occi health say first.
Ange xx
Hi All,
I had my skin prick test done yesterday, im offically allergic to banana. All the other food stuffs were ok, until last night about about 8pm when one of them started to itch come up abit swallen & tingly, all this happened after a glass of wine & a couple of doritos. Im not sure what that test was for. I had taken a photo of it & i might send it to the cons & see what he says. The question i want to know is why did it come up 9hrs l8r??
Lmc
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