Allergens are ubiquitous; they are one of the many illnesses that have prolonged inconvenienced in many people’s lives. It is triggered when the body has a hypersensitive reaction to harmless substances in the environment. Often times, reactions such as rashes, asthma, and rhinitis would occur as a consequence of being in contact with eggs, peanuts, dust mites, etc.
The cause of allergy is nothing more than a sensitive reaction to stuff caused by the environment or food. Consequently, the allergy tests on the market are mainly conducted in these two areas. Food stimulation tests, skin patch tests, and IgE blood tests, etc. can help to find out what type of allergies occur in the patient. If you want to find the causes of your allergic response, we highly recommend you take an allergy test as soon as possible! This article introduces different types of tests available and compares the best places to get examined.
What is an Allergy? An Introduction to Allergies
The main reason why people suffer from allergic symptoms is because of the inflammatory response of the body's immune system to certain substances. When the immune system encounters allergens, it will create immunoglobulins (IgE), also known as antibodies, specifically for these allergens.
When mast cells are stimulated by IgE, they will release endocrines such as Histamine and Prostaglandin, and cause a series of allergic symptoms, including skin rash, vomiting, and runny nose. It may cause difficulty in breathing due to swelling of the trachea, and sudden shock due to a drop in blood pressure. Both are fatal, so it is important to find out the cause of your allergies as early as possible.
Common Types of Allergies
The allergen itself is actually a substance that is not harmful to the body, but the immune system misjudges it and produces an incorrect overreaction. The causes of allergies can be divided into:
- Genetic factors: If one of the parents has allergies, there is a good chance that the allergy will be passed on to the next generation
- Environmental factors: Substances present in the environment may be the culprits of sensitization, and these substances can be divided into inhalation, contact, and food allergens according to their properties.
- Inhalation allergens: Substances that cause inhalation allergies, including pollen, dust mites, animal hair, and dander, can cause symptoms such as runny nose and sneezing
- Contact allergens: When the allergens come into contact with the skin and "allergic contact dermatitis" occurs, skincare products, handbags, metals, and perfumes can all induce a series of skin allergy symptoms
- Food allergens: milk, eggs, peanuts, and seafood are all common food allergens, and usually cause gastrointestinal symptoms after eating
How Many Options are there for Allergy Test?
As mentioned above, just as there are different allergens, there are also different allergy tests that can be divided into several categories to more accurately identify the problem.
- Food allergens
- Food Stimulation Test: Mainly used to test food allergies. Under the supervision of medical staff, eat specific foods to observe whether allergic reactions will occur
- Food Stimulation Test: Mainly used to test food allergies. Under the supervision of medical staff, eat specific foods to observe whether allergic reactions will occur
- Contact allergen
- FSkin prick test: A small amount of allergen is pierced into the skin, causing a local allergic reaction. The result can be obtained within 15-20 minutes
- Skin patch test: put a waterproof test sticker on the back with 10 common allergens. After 48 hours of contact, you can judge by the allergic reaction on the skin
- All allergens
- Blood test: There are two types of blood tests: IgE and IgG. The Hong Kong Allergy Association interviewed an allergy and clinical immunology specialist, Adrian Wu. During the dialogue, he expressed a lack of confidence in the results produced by the IgG tests and suggested that IgE is instead, very much preferred and used in the medical field. The IgE blood test can be divided into two kinds: Faber allergy test and quick sensitivity allergy test.
- Faber allergy test: third-generation IgE allergy test, using nanotechnology, requires less than 200uL of serum to detect 150 allergens, but the test takes a long time. It takes roughly 3 to 20 working days to get a report
- Quick-sensitivity test: the test does not need to draw blood, just take 7-9 drops of blood from the "finger" to detect 16 kinds of environment and 19 food allergens at the same time, usually covering 90% of common allergens. The report will be available the day after the test
- Blood test: There are two types of blood tests: IgE and IgG. The Hong Kong Allergy Association interviewed an allergy and clinical immunology specialist, Adrian Wu. During the dialogue, he expressed a lack of confidence in the results produced by the IgG tests and suggested that IgE is instead, very much preferred and used in the medical field. The IgE blood test can be divided into two kinds: Faber allergy test and quick sensitivity allergy test.
Doctors generally recommend IgE blood tests, because allergy symptoms are divided into "immediate" and "delayed". Only blood tests can identify allergens of "delayed" allergies; while in IgE blood tests, the Faber allergy test is more comprehensive, especially for people suffering from allergies.
Recommending 6 Test Centers and their Allergy Test Plans
1. Clearbridge Medical Group
Location: 1902A, East Point Centre, 555 Hennessy Road, Hong Kong
Allergy Test Recommendation
| Generation IgE Allergy Test – CAAM Faber |
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Price: HK$5,980 (HK$7,200) Specialties and Remarks:
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2. Hong Kong Allergy Test Center
Location:
Rm B, 22/F, 171-173 Lockhart Road, Kingswell Commercial Tower, Wan Chai
Unit 1205, 12/F, Pioneer Centre, 750 Nathan Road, Mong Kok
Allergy Test Recommendation
| Faber IgE blood test (moelcular level by nanotechnology) |
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Price: HK$6,000 (HK$7,800) Specialties and Remarks:
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| Skin Patch Test (Skin Allergy Test for Contact Dermatitis) |
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Price: HK$3,800 (HK$4,800) Specialties and Remarks:
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3. 22PLUS
Location: Room 1380 13/F, Kitec 1 Trademart Drive, Kowloon Bay
Allergy Test Recommendation
| 22PLUS IgG Sensitivity-PRO IgG Food Sensitivity Test (60 Items) |
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$150 Park N Shop/AEON/YATA gift coupon is offered Price: HK$1,500 (HK$1,600) Specialties and Remarks:
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| 22PLUS Allergy-PRO IgE Allergy Test (Professional Version 112 Tests) |
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$500 Park N Shop/AEON/YATA gift coupon is offered Price: HK$5,500 (HK$5,900) Specialties and Remarks:
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4. ApexHealth
Location: 21/F, Kowloon Building, 555 Nathan Road, Kowloon, Hong Kong
Allergy Test Recommendation
| ApexHealth IgE Pro 2 Allergy Test |
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Price: HK$2,980 Specialties and Remarks:
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| ApexHealth IgG Food Sensitivity Screening Test (125) |
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Price: HK$2,680 Specialties and Remarks:
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5. Hong Kong Well Woman Centre
Locations:
3B Hang Shing Building, 363 Nathan Road, Jordan
Room 1501, 15/F Hang Lung Centre, 2-20 Paterson Street, Causeway Bay
Allergy Test Recommendation
| Hong Kong Well Women All-round allergen (IgE) test (Food and Inhalation) |
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Price: HK$2,200 Specialties and Remarks:
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6. Hello Kitty Health Centre
Location: Room 115, 1/F, Wing On Plaza, 62 Mody Road, Tsim Sha Tsui East, Kowloon, Hong Kong
Allergy Test Recommendation
| Hello Kitty Health Centre Fastcheck PRO20 |
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Price: HK$2,800 (HK$3,600) Specialties and Remarks:
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Allergy Test Hong Kong Plan Summary
| Plans | Faber IgE blood test (moelcular level by nanotechnology) | Skin Patch Test (Skin Allergy Test for Contact Dermatitis) | Generation IgE Allergy Test – CAAM Faber | IgG Sensitivity-PRO IgG Food Sensitivity Test (60 Items) |
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| Center | Hong Kong Allergy Test Center | Clearbridge Medical Group | 22PLUS | |
| Price | $6,000 | $3,800 | $5,980 | $1,500 |
| Location(s) | Wan Chai, Mong Kok | Causeway Bay | Kowloon Bay | |
| Allergen | 172 | 30 | 172 | 60 |
| Specialties and Remarks |
Third generation IgE allergy test |
Skin allergy test for Contact Dermatitis |
IgE food and environment allergy test recommended for any age |
Sensitivity-PRO IgG food allergy test $150 gift coupon is offered |
| Order Now | ||||
| Plans | IgE Pro 2 Allergy Test | IgG Food Sensitivity Screening Test (125) | Hong Kong Well Women All-round allergen (IgE) test (Food and Inhalation) | Fashcheck PRO20 |
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| Center | ApexHealth | HKWWC | Hello Kitty Health Centre |
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| Price | $2,980 | $2,680 | $2,200 | $2,800 |
| Location(s) | Mong Kok | Jordan, Causeway Bay | Tsim Sha Tsui | |
| Allergen | 90 | 120 | 70 | 36 |
| Specialties and Remarks |
Recommended for 2 years old or above |
Recommended for 2 years old or above |
IgE food and environement allergy test |
No need to draw blood, just prick a fingertip to collect a few drops of blood |
| Order Now | ||||
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