allergen

Examples of allergen in the following topics:

• Diagnosis and Treatment of Allergy

  • Sometimes, the allergens are injected "intradermally" into the patient's skin with a needle and syringe.
  • In addition, multiple allergens can be detected with a single blood sample.
  • Traditional treatment and management of allergies consisted of simply avoiding the allergen in question.
  • However, while avoidance of allergens may reduce symptoms and avoid life-threatening anaphylaxis, it is difficult to do for those with allergies to pollen or other airborne allergens.
  • In effect, the person builds up immunity to increasing amounts of the allergen.

• Allergic Responses to Drugs

  • Virtually any substance, when exposed internally or externally to the body, can act as an allergen and illicit an immune system response, such is the case with antimicrobial drugs.
  • While the drug acts as an allergen, the drug itself is not causing direct damage to the individual, but rather it is the response of an individual's immune system which is deleterious.
  • There are many factors that can determine if an individual is sensitive to an antimicrobial drug, as with other allergens.
  • Some factors include genetics and past exposures to other allergens, typically a person who has allergies to other things, such as various foods, is more prone to have or develop drug allergies.

• Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA)

  • Describe how the Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) can be used to detect and quantitate antigens, antibodies and allergens