We now officially know that Ethan has peanut & tree nut allergies. We've been staying nut/shellfish-free for Ethan's whole life, but never knew if there was an actual allergy to them. But today we went in for the scratch test. This is obviously very disappointing for us. The bad news is that they are most likely lifelong allergies, unlike his allergies to milk & eggs which children typically outgrow. The good news is that he does not have allergies to shellfish. Pictured above is his little back, while undergoing the scratch test.About the Scratch Test:They test potential allergens, along with controls, to see how the body reacts. There is a slight prick (which does not hurt) & application of the allergens. At his testing today, you can see results for nuts, peanuts, shellfish & eggs. Then, you have to keep the child from scratching & rubbing while it hurts & itches like crazy (for those who react). I basically just lightly blew on his back for 15 minutes while he whimpered & squirmed on ocassion. The middle row is shellfish, which is negative for allergies. The bottom left is peanuts, and the right column is tree nuts. He tested very very high for walnut allergies.
What really bums me out? He prescribed us 3 epi-pens. I took it as a good sign that he had never felt a need to prescribe me an epi-pen until now. But the nut allergies are the big bad allergies, so it looks like we're in it for the long haul. At some point, we'll go in for a more comprehensive blood test, which is more accurate as well, but I just couldn't handle that today.
Bummer.
**As always, I prefer not to discuss this in front of Ethan when possible. I want to minimize any feelings of being left out, self-pity, or awkwardness that you can imagine might accompany such a diagnosis.
8 comments:
That really stinks, Carrie! I am so sorry to hear that he has the nut allergies. I know you're thrilled about the dairy and eggs, but I also know this is a real disappointment.
Sweet, baby! and sweet Mommy! Hang in there Carrie, you are a fantastic Mommy to this precious boy.
Poor baby!! What a tough, brave little guy!! At least you know. "(
that sucks. so sorry to hear that about the nuts. his poor little back looks pitiful--i've been through those before and it is miserable not being able to scratch!
I am so sorry to hear that. My son has egg, milk and peanut allergies too. I am hoping he will outgrow some of them. I know that is hard news for you - I know that is hard to have to get the epi-pens too - I hope you will not ever have to use them!
So sorry to hear this, Carrie! This is such a bummer for Ethan. He has been such a good sport with all he has to go through already. You are doing a wonderful job with him.
Hang in there, Carrie! I remember having this test done when I was in third grade. I was highly allergic to peanuts, shellfish and cats according to both the scratch test and the needle tests. I had to take shots for most of my childhood for these and other allergies (trees, pollen, feathers, etc.) and now I'm allergy free for the most part. I hope the same works out for Ethan.
Oh no! Those welts look SO uncomfortable.
The thing about skin prick tests, though, is that they can be pretty inaccurate. I've been allergic to milk, eggs, and sunflower seeds since birth. When I finally had an skin test at age 15, I developed welts of equivalent size to things like carrots and strawberries (which I eat with no ill effects) as to milk and egg (which I know I am still allergic to from cross-contamination issues). My allergist told me that the false positive rate is somewhere around 50%.
So have hope! When he's older, talk to your allergist about challenge-testing some of the ones with lower IgE levels (they give you a printout of this from the blood test).
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