Allergy Testing Long Island

Comprehensive Allergy Solutions and Allergy Testing

At Dr. Calapai’s office in Long Island, we specialize in diagnosing and treating a wide range of allergies, including food allergies, seasonal allergies, and skin allergies. With the help of our experienced on-site allergist, we use the latest medical advancements to provide personalized care plans. Our approach aims to not only alleviate symptoms but also address the root cause of your allergies, ensuring a better quality of life.

Allergies can be a serious concern for many individuals, causing discomfort and frustration. If you are experiencing allergies, it’s important to know that you’re not alone. Fortunately, there are many reliable and accurate methods to test for allergies and find effective relief.

Do You Need Allergy Testing?

While allergy symptoms themselves are relatively straightforward and obvious when they appear, the problem for many people—especially those who have never had seasonal allergies before—is that it may be hard to distinguish whether these symptoms come from allergies or a separate medical concern.

For example, these conditions can all produce symptoms that are often mistaken for allergic reactions, including inflammation, itching, and so on:

• Colds
• Respiratory infections
• Non-allergic rhinitis
• COPD
• Asthma
• Autoimmune conditions

In addition to helping you distinguish between allergies and a separate condition, allergy testing also allows you to isolate the actual allergen itself. Whether you’re dealing with seasonal allergies, skin allergies, or food allergies, it’s not always easy to tell what specifically causes an allergic reaction.

If you are experiencing chronic sneezing, itchy and/or red eyes, hives, wheezing, congestion, or headaches, it’s always a good idea to seek treatment. In either case (allergic reaction or separate condition), being examined by an experienced provider will enable you to pinpoint the issue and establish the proper treatment approach.

Initial Consultation for Allergy Diagnosis

Understanding your allergy history is crucial for effective treatment.

Once you have scheduled an appointment and come into the office for a consultation, our on-site allergist at our Garden City office, will conduct an Intradermal Skin Testing on you. This test will help us determine any possible allergies or skin conditions you may have. After the testing is done, the results will be analyzed and provided to you. Our team will also explain the meaning of the results and suggest the appropriate course of action to address any issues found.

• During your first visit, we’ll discuss the nature of your symptoms and their impact on your daily life.
• We review your medical and family history to identify potential hereditary patterns of allergic reactions.
• Based on this initial assessment, we determine the most appropriate diagnostic tests to uncover the specific triggers of your allergies.

Comprehensive Allergy Testing

Treatment #1: Intradermal Allergy Skin Testing

• What is Intradermal Allergy Skin Testing? Small amounts of potential allergens are injected just under the skin.This test is highly sensitive and specifically useful for identifying allergens related to environmental and seasonal allergies.
• Treatment Process: We inject a tiny amount of an allergen into the superficial layer of your skin. This method is particularly detailed, allowing us to observe how your skin reacts to specific allergens within a controlled setting. A positive reaction typically involves a small, itchy bump, similar to a mosquito bite, which indicates an allergy.

Treatment #2: Blood Testing

• Is Blood Testing for Allergy Testing Effective? Blood testing for allergies is ideal for patients who have skin conditions, specific food allergies, or take medications that might interfere with skin testing.
• Treatment Process: Your blood will be tested for the presence of immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies to specific allergens. This test can identify a range of allergens, including food and environmental triggers, without direct exposure to the allergen.

Which Is Better?

Generally, if a patient is eligible to safely undergo intradermal allergy skin testing, then this is the better option for several reasons. Most importantly, intradermal skin testing allows us to better define the dosing threshold required to elicit a reaction.

For example, after injecting a small dose of an allergen under the skin, if there is no reaction, we can then apply a slightly larger dose. This serves two key functions. First, this can help us to determine more accurately whether or not there is an allergy to the substance at all, and second, it will allow us to determine how much of that allergen is required to trigger a response.

We can then work just under this threshold when treating the allergy to get your body used to the substance without flaring up symptoms.

Are Tests Ever Combined?

In some cases, yes—both blood and intradermal allergy tests are combined to decrease the chances of a false positive from either one. This is commonly done for food allergy testing purposes as a way of confidently informing the patient’s decision to remove the offending food from their diet.

In other cases, if a blood test yields results that seem contradictory to the patient’s history (or other factors), an intradermal test may be conducted to further support the diagnosis.

Whatever your circumstances are, our team at Dr. Calapai’s office will always keep you fully informed as to the best and safest allergy testing options. Contact us for a consultation, and we will partner with you to tailor a treatment plan that fits your unique circumstances.

Allergy Treatment Options

Allergen Immunotherapy:

• Immunotherapy, commonly referred to as allergy shots, is a medical treatment that involves administering gradually increasing doses of allergens to a patient to help them build up a resistance to specific allergens. This treatment is particularly effective in combating environmental allergens such as pollen, dust mites, and pet dander, which can cause a range of allergic reactions, including sneezing, runny nose, itchy eyes, and skin rashes. Allergy shots are usually administered over a period of several months or years, depending on the severity of the patient’s allergies and their response to the treatment. The goal of this treatment is to reduce the severity of allergy symptoms, and in some cases, eliminate them altogether.
• Process: Small, controlled exposure to these allergens over time can change the way your immune system responds to them, potentially reducing your allergy symptoms significantly. The treatment usually spans several years to achieve the best results and may lead to long-lasting relief.

Sublingual Allergy Treatment:

• Allergen-specific drops are a form of immunotherapy that can be used to treat allergies. These drops are placed under the tongue and absorbed into the bloodstream. Once in the bloodstream, the allergen-specific proteins in the drops interact with the immune system to help it become desensitized to the allergen. This therapy helps to train the immune system to tolerate allergens more effectively, which can reduce or eliminate allergy symptoms over time. This is a user-friendly and needle-free option particularly suited for patients who prefer to avoid injections. Overall, allergen-specific drops are a safe and effective way to manage allergies for many people. If you are interested in this treatment option, you should talk to your doctor to see if it is right for you.
• Method: Allergen-specific drops are placed under your tongue, where they are absorbed into your bloodstream. This method trains your immune system to tolerate allergens more effectively and is especially convenient for ongoing, at-home treatment.

Self Care for Allergies: Understanding and Avoiding Your Triggers

Additional Services

Intravenous Vitamin Therapy: This supplemental treatment can enhance your immune system’s overall health and resilience.

• Tailored vitamin and mineral formulations are administered intravenously to boost your nutritional status, which can help support your body’s immune response and overall well-being, particularly beneficial for patients with chronic allergies.

Allergy Testing FAQ

Are allergies always permanent?

Actually, the answer is no. Some allergies (especially food allergies) can be “outgrown” as children mature into adults. The inverse is also possible: some adults develop allergies to substances they did not react to in the past. The process of developing or losing an allergy is mediated by a range of factors. Environmental exposure, air quality, age-related immune system changes, health conditions, genetics, and other elements can all affect whether or not you develop an allergy.

How accurate is allergy testing?

Both intradermal and blood testing can produce false positives at a fairly high rate (more than 30%), and both are more than 90% accurate when it comes to negative results. More than the test itself, properly diagnosing an allergy requires the practitioner to carefully weigh test results against each patient’s unique medical history. This is crucial for differentiating between a false positive and a true allergy. Skin testing carries the additional advantage of re-testing specific allergens at higher doses for confirmation purposes.

Is it possible to test for allergies at home?

While it is possible to test for allergies at home with a home test kit, self-administering without the aid of a professional significantly increases your chances of altering or misinterpreting the results.

Does allergy testing indicate how severe the allergy is?

No, allergy tests simply demonstrate whether or not an allergy is present in the first place. In this sense, they don’t measure severity, but rather reveal the triggers to allergic reactions. The severity of an allergy is better assessed with a comprehensive look at the patient’s medical history, symptoms (leading up to requesting the allergy test), and additional factors. Two people who react the same to an allergy test may react very differently when being exposed to that allergen in higher quantities and/or in different ways (as when ingesting food, applying topical products, and so on).

How can I safely undergo allergy testing after having a severe reaction in the past?

In this case, we advise even more strongly against home testing. While the specific approach in this situation is determined on a case-by-case basis with your provider, blood tests may be the best option because they do not involve actually exposing the patient to the suspected allergen(s). Still, skin tests may be performed, though with very small doses. The most important aspect is to ensure that you are under the supervision of a trained professional who is aware of your history.

How soon will my allergy testing results become available?

Intradermal allergy testing typically yields results within well under an hour. Blood tests require a period of several days for the lab work to be processed. If you have any further questions relating to the testing experience, including what to do before and after your session, our team at the office of Dr. Christopher Calapai is happy to work with you.

Booking Your Consultation

If you are looking for an allergist near you, schedule a consultation for allergy testing at our Garden City office in Long Island to get started on your path to relief and take the first step towards a life free from allergy symptoms. Our dedicated team is committed to providing you with the highest standard of allergy care.