Diagnosing Dust Allergy

Dust allergy should be diagnosed by an allergist. Normally, doctors would follow 3 simple steps in trying to determine what your allergy is.

• Medical history. This is a critical step to let the doctor understand the symptoms and their possible causes. Give as much accurate information as you can to guide the physician if dust mites are causing the issue or something else. It would be advisable to take note of the symptoms in a notebook so it would be easier for you to itemize the things your doctor needs. Your doctor will also ask you about medicines you are taking, your lifestyle at work, home, or school.

• Physical examination. Your doctor will then check your ears, eyes, throat, nose, chest, and skin. The examination may also include a pulmonary function test to check how well your lungs exhale air. An x-ray of your lungs may also be required. 

• Tests for allergens. There are 3 types of tests that your doctor may use: patch test, skin test, or blood test. Skin test is the most accurate and least expensive to determine the suspected allergen. A patch test will help determine if you have contact dermatitis. A small amount of concentrated allergen will be placed on your skin, and then be covered by bandage for 48 hours. If the result is positive, you will develop a rash. A blood test is the last resort, especially if the person affected cannot undergo a skin or patch test. A blood sample will be taken from you to be analyzed by a laboratory. The lab will add allergen to your blood sample to measure the amount of antibodies your blood produces to attack the allergens.