Skin vs blood allergy tests

[Guest guest]

Skin testing only tests IgE, it is only one of 5 types of antibodies. There

are also IgA, IgD, IgG, IgM.

IgG and IgA can be tested in the blood.

IgE is usually associated with classic allergies, runny nose, watery eyes,

rashes, etc. It's probably not the type of allergy we are dealing with here.

IgA is found in mucus and intestinal tract lining.

IgG and IgM are in the blood. IgM is the first line of defense, it increases

with an initial exposure, then IgG picks up and IgM decreases. On subsequent

exposures, IgG reacts more quickly than it did the first time.

IgD - I don't know much about.

The skin tests are known for not being very accurate. I believe the blood

test is much closer to the truth, but still can have some errors.