Please verify your email address to receive email notifications.

Enter your email address

We have sent you a verification email. Please check your inbox and spam folder.

Unable to send verification, please refresh and try again later.

  • Q&A with Australian Health Practitioners

    Can a skin prick test diagnose the cause of my eczema?

    Related Topics
    Allergy Dermatology Eczema
    answer this question

  • Find a professional to answer your question

  • 1

    Thanks

    Peta Adams

    Dietitian

    I am an Accredited Practising Dietitian locally born and working within the Riverina.I have a passion for helping people to achieve their nutrition goals, coaching … View Profile

    No skin prick tests (SPT's) are not a diagnostic tool for eczema as someone can have a positive SPT however not actually respond to the food/allergen. 

    The cause of eczea is multifaceted with many aspects affecting its severity the environment, diet hormones and stress can all affect it and minimiasing the exposure to these offending conditions all help to control eczema.

    I would recommende speaking to your GP or visiting ACSIA website 
    http://www.allergy.org.au/patients/skin-allergy/eczema for more information.

    Reply to this post
     · 
    Report
    Reply to this post

    You must be a Health Professional to reply to this post. to your account or now (it's free).

  • 2

    Agrees

    3

    Thanks

    Prof Ron Walls

    Pathologist (Immunologist)

    The important thing to understand about eczema is that there is no one single cause, and allergies can certainly contribute. A skin test can be very helpful to identify whether a specific allergen is contributing to the eczema.

    Reply to this post
     · 
    Report
    Reply to this post

    You must be a Health Professional to reply to this post. to your account or now (it's free).

  • 1

    Thanks

    Lucinda Curran

    Acupuncturist

    Lucinda Curran of Eco Health Solutions offers a truly holistic approach to health by combining Building Biology and Chinese Medicine. Her work is solutions-focussed and … View Profile

    Hi,

    I would also look for causes within your environment, of which skin prick tests may or may not show up sensitivities.

    Some things you can do:

    • Change personal care products to ones that are chemical-free,
    • use unscented laundry products,
    • avoid using perfumes and fragranced products, and
    • find out if there is mould in your home.
    There can be a multitude of other contributing factors, but these are ones I would look at first based on what you have said.

    I hope this helps.

    Reply to this post
     · 
    Report
    Reply to this post

    You must be a Health Professional to reply to this post. to your account or now (it's free).

  • Dr Liam Beiglari

    Allergy Specialist & Immunologist

    I am a clinical immunologist and allergist. I am experienced in the diagnosis and treatment of adult patients with allergic diseases, autoimmune conditions, those living … View Profile

    Skin prick testing has been used in the past to look for allergic sensitisation that might be contributing to eczema (aka atopic dermatitis). However, we now know that eczema is a distinct entity from food allergy. These days, we generally do not perform broad skin prick testing simply because someone has eczema.

    The reason is that skin prick testing detects the presence of specific IgE antibodies which may not be associated with clinical allergy. In other words, a person can have a positive skin prick test to a food or environmental allergen but not actually have symptoms when exposed to that allergen. If testing is done without a clear history, false positives can lead to unhelpful allergy labels and unnecessary avoidance.

    That said, some people with eczema also have true food allergy or environmental allergy. In those situations, skin prick testing can be useful if the history is suggestive. For example, if a particular food reproducibly causes immediate symptoms such as hives, swelling, vomiting, wheeze or anaphylaxis, then targeted allergy testing may be appropriate.

    So the short answer is that a skin prick test does not diagnose the cause of eczema by itself. It can sometimes help answer a more specific question, such as whether there is sensitisation to a suspected allergen, but the result must be interpreted alongside the clinical history.

    Reply to this post
     · 
    Report
    Reply to this post

    You must be a Health Professional to reply to this post. to your account or now (it's free).

answer this question

You must be a Health Professional to answer this question. Log in or Sign up .

You may also like these related questions

Related Fact Sheets
Related Questions
Community Contributor

Empowering Australians to make better health choices