Abstract
Skin prick testing is an essential test procedure to confirm sensitization in IgE-mediated allergic disease in subjects with rhinoconjunctivitis, asthma, urticaria, anapylaxis, atopic eczema and food and drug allergy. This manuscript reviews the available evidence including Medline and Embase searches, abstracts of international allergy meetings and position papers from the world allergy literature. The recommended method of prick testing includes the appropriate use of specific allergen extracts, positive and negative controls, interpretation of the tests after 15 – 20 minutes of application, with a positive result defined as a wheal ≥3 mm diameter. A standard prick test panel for Europe for inhalants is proposed and includes hazel (Corylus avellana), alder (Alnus incana), birch (Betula alba), plane (Platanus vulgaris), cypress (Cupressus sempervirens), grass mix (Poa pratensis, Dactilis glomerata, Lolium perenne, Phleum pratense, Festuca pratensis, Helictotrichon pretense), Olive (Olea europaea), mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris), ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia), Alternaria alternata (tenuis), Cladosporium herbarum, Aspergillus fumigatus, Parietaria, cat, dog, Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus, Dermatophagoides farinae, and cockroach (Blatella germanica). Standardization of the skin test procedures and standard panels for different geographic locations are encouraged worldwide to permit better comparisons for diagnostic, clinical and research purposes.
Highlights
Skin prick testing is an essential test procedure to confirm sensitization in Immunoglobuline E (IgE)-mediated allergic disease in subjects with rhinoconjunctivitis, asthma, urticaria, anapylaxis, atopic eczema and food and drug allergy
Since the first publication about Skin prick testing (SPT) by Helmtraud Ebruster in 1959 [1], who extensively researched this diagnostic test, it has been used as a primary diagnostic tool to detect type I hypersensitivity reactions
The Global Allergy and Asthma European Network (GA2LEN) is a network of research investigators formed to augment the cooperation of allergy and asthma research throughout Europe
Summary
There is general agreement that the core diagnostic test for type I immediate allergy, i.e. the SPT, should be further standardized to include standardized procedures and allergen panels. Additional allergens can be added to this “core”, when indicated. Such standards are likely to: (1) improve the quality of patient diagnosis and care, and (2) reduce variability of results and make test results comparable. Authors’ contributions Conceived and designed the European SPT study: LMH, MB, GB, UD, SD, WF, MG, TH, ATB, SW. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. Author details 1Department of Dermatology, University Hospital Erlangen, 91054 Erlangen, Germany. Received: 20 September 2012 Accepted: 18 January 2013 Published: 1 February 2013
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