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Husband w/ Pca, adverse reaction and skin testing

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Posted 9/14/2007 8:14 PM (GMT -8)
Hello,
My name is Maria Teresa and I usually post on the Prostate Cancer Forum because of my 55 year old husband. My husband was scheduled for surgery on September 11, but when they tried to administer the anesthesia, he kept having airway spasms so they cancelled the surgery and rescheduled it. We've seen pulmonary specialists and an allergist to help stabilize my husband's respiratory system prior to the next attempt at surgery. My husband never had anesthesia before. My husband quit smoking 4 1/2 years ago. He has chronic sinus problems, acid reflux, and hypothyroidism. The doctors have prescribed Flonase, Advair, and Spiriva to address the respiratory situation.
I tried to do an internet search for the information I'm seeking but came up empty. My husband had the skin allergy testing done on his back which came back positive for dust mites, pollen from the Birch tree, and cockroaches (we don't have cockroaches at home, but there are dead cockroaches at work where my husband repairs electronics). I wanted to know what allergens are tested on a person's skin? Is it a standard, universal, all encompassing test? Would this procedure have tested for food allergies, too?

This is the second day my husband has been on the new medications. Today I cleaned his room, enclosed the mattress and pillows in protective barriers, and washed all the bedding in hot water. I'm concerned because he is in his room sneezing over and over and sucking in the nasal drainage (he thinks it's because of the pressure changes in the weather).
I look forward to your feedback. Thank you so much!
Maria Teresa
Posted 9/15/2007 5:45 AM (GMT -8)
Hi Maria Teresa, welcome to the Allergies/Asthma forum. I'm sorry your hubby is going thru so much right now. I'm curious, what sort of surgery were they going to perform on your hubby? Couldn't have it been done thru a spinal block instead of general anesthesia? My dad who is a heavy smoker just had prostrate surgery and they did a spinal on him and he had no troubles at all other then the spinal block taking longer to wear off due to dehydration.

But to answer your skin test question. Usually they test for the common allergens such as weeds, pollens, mites, animal dander etc. However the scratch test is not 100% accurate. With a scratch test, you can get many false positives or false negatives. The most accurate test is the RAST (I think this is the right name for it), but it's a blood test and they test you for all the common allergens in addition to whatever you want him tested for such as food or environment allergens.

It's good you are enclosing all his things. Thats a good start. But now that the cooler weather is coming, don't forget the air ducts. If you haven't had these cleaned recently, now is the time. In addition you can put cheesecloth over the vents to catch any dust or dirt that is going thru the vents. If you have a ceiling fan, definately clean this with hot soapy water - try to steer clear of chemicals because if your hubby has allergies - chemicals might aggravate them. If you have carpet, you might consider having it removed because carpet is notorious for collecting dust mites and other forms of allergens.

Good luck and I wish you and your hubby well.
Posted 9/15/2007 2:24 PM (GMT -8)
Hi and thank you for the welcome! My husband was scheduled for the Da Vinci prostatectomy. Thank you for the information and the helpful tips! :)

Maria Teresa
Posted 9/15/2007 9:56 PM (GMT -8)

Red,

You are right about the RAST test being the one they do with blood tests.  I had that done many years ago before I had asthma and it is the very best allergy test, in my opinion.  Having had allergies for many years, I had allergy testing done many times, but I would have never known about the food allergies with out the RAST test.  It's more expensive, but worth it.

Take care!

Carla

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