SAN DIEGO — An increasing number of allergy tests are available on the Internet, and many are of unproven value, Dr. Helen Smith reported during a poster session at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology.
Dr. Smith, professor and chair of primary care at Brighton and Sussex (England) Medical School, and her associates used the search engines Google and Ask (formerly known as AskJeeves) and entered the following phrase: “allergy AND tests AND (home OR self).” The search identified 38 tests that were offered by 26 suppliers, with 61 different test/supplier combinations.
The most common categories of tests were for allergen-specific IgE (11 examples) and other (11), followed by allergy-specific IgG (4), unspecified dust allergens (4), celiac disease antibodies (4), mold from dust (3), and total IgE (1).
The most common sample requirement was blood from a finger stick (17 examples), followed by drawn blood (11), dust (7), and saliva (1). Two other tests did not require a sample, only answers to a questionnaire. The results for 14 tests required self-interpretation; 8 tests reported the results on a Web site, 5 were mailed to the patient's physician, and 3 were mailed to the patient. For two tests, the method of notification was not clear.
Twenty-four tests offered advice on an information sheet; 11 offered advice from a nutritionist, and 7 provided a telephone help line. In 24 of the 61 test-supplier combinations, no advice was offered. Costs ranged from free questionnaires to $1,290 for a screen of more than 200 allergens.
“Home allergy tests may have an adverse impact on health by giving false reassurance [without] a structured allergy history and inappropriately linking symptoms to a nonexistent allergy,” they wrote.
The tests may adversely impact health by giving false reassurance without a structured allergy history. DR. SMITH