Allergy Skin Prick Test (Skin Test)

What is an Allergy Skin Test?

An allergy skin prick test involves placing a small drop of various allergen extracts on the skin and gently pricking the surface with a sterile lancet. After waiting 15 minutes, if you are allergic to a specific substance, a "wheal" (a raised, itchy bump similar to a mosquito bite) surrounded by redness will appear at that site.

Generally, this test can be performed on people of all ages. However, in infants under 6 months old and in the elderly, the test might produce a "false negative" result because the skin's reactivity is naturally lower in these age groups.