Thread: Skin prick testing

I thought it may be useful to share our experience of allergy testing. DD3 has asthma, eczema and hayfever, has had them since a baby, now age 7. She is also very short for her age, 0.4th centile or below. I tried repeatedly to get a referral for allergy testing from our GP, but met resistance even when I said we'd pay for a private referral, I was told it simply isn't done in our county, and the results were unlikely to be useful.

On another appointment, I decided to go for a new tactic, and asked them to refer her for her stature, to be investigated. At age 2 she was 25th centile but by age 3.5 she was 0.4th, I felt it needed looking into. The GP was happy to refer to a paediatrician, so off we went, this is about a year ago. The paed took a very detailed history, and in a nutshell after various tests and x-rays there is no known sinister reason for her to be small, so they will keep an eye on her.

However, what we did achieve which I admit I was hoping for, was a referral from the paediatrician, to the paediatric allergy clinic - and guess what - it is at the Oxford Children's Hospital. So much for no allergy testing in the county!

She had one appointment and was given skin prick testing there and then, which proved she is severely allergic to cats (we had one aging one at the time and would have got another if we hadn't known), also allergic to dogs, mild reaction to grasses, not allergic to cows milk or house dust mite.

I would call that a VERY useful set of results personally. The cat has since died, and we now know not to get any more furry indoor pets, odds are she'll also react to hamsters, rabbits etc if kept indoors. We also know that we don't have to manicly clean all dust from her room or worry about special bedding for her. And we know that she is perfectly fine to continue having cows milk.

Just before the allergy testing appointment, we saw the nurse at the GP surgery for an asthma appointment. She sat me down and asked me if I had considered asking for allergy testing, as dd's eczema and asthma would not be properly controlled without knowing what was setting her off. I pointed out that the GP had been asked for this several times!!!! ARGHHH!!!!

So I would just say, persist. Get them referred for anything else if necessary, but find something, get in the hospital system, and then you can get the testing done. She is improving so much now, the cat died in October (he'd had cancer for ages and was 17yrs old) and her skin has really cleared up (starting to worsen again now so I wonder if this is a pollen thing starting up?).

Christine

dd's skin for eczema always flare's up this time of the year it's the change of the fall appartly.

we we're very lucky with dd we went one day to see the gp and was refered within a week to the hospita l for the tests so i surpose different county's do different things.