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Patricia

Patricia has suffered from a stuffy nose and red, watery eyes every spring since she was 9 years old. When she turned 11, her allergy blood test results, combined with her symptoms led to a diagnosis of birch pollen allergy. She was prescribed antihistamines and local steroids to use during birch pollen season. But now Patricia is 16, and for the past couple of years her stuffy nose and red, watery eyes seem to be getting worse. More recently, her mouth started to itch while she was eating a fresh peach, so now she’s worried that she has a peach allergy, too.

Patricia’s Results

A combination of skin-prick test and an ImmunoCAPTM Whole Allergen blood test results led to Patricia being diagnosed with a reaction to birch pollen and peaches. But her healthcare professional wants to refine her diagnosis so that he can better assess her risk of severe reactions and give her proper advice. He needs more information, so he also orders an ImmunoCAPTM Allergen Component test for birch and peach. These test results indicate that Patricia’s itchy mouth when eating a peach is because of a cross-reaction with birch pollen. This birch pollen-related food allergy means she may in the future experience the same itchy-mouth symptoms when she eats other foods like apples, pears, hazelnuts, carrots or celery. She was prescribed antihistamines and local steroids to use during birch pollen season and told to stop eating peaches if the symptoms become annoying.

Tree Pollens

Fruit & Vegetables

Am I Allergic?

Why it’s important to know

Many people are so used to living with their allergies that they never think that they should have their healthcare professional reassess their initial diagnosis. Since your allergies can change over time, retesting can play an important role in your quality of life or the life of someone you love, by reducing unnecessary allergen avoidance and helping reassess your potential for a severe reaction.1 Be sure to consult with your healthcare professional.

Learn more about testing

The people, places and events depicted in these photographs do not represent actual patients, nor are they affiliated in any way with the attached case study or Thermo Fisher Scientific.

References

1. American College of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology. http://acaai.org/resources/connect/ask-allergist/Allergy-Testing. Accessed October 2017.