Latex Allergy Screening: Symptoms, Risks & What to Do

Anyone can develop an allergy to latex, but health-care workers and workers in the rubber industry have the highest risk because of routine contact with latex products. The protein found in latex can cause mild symptoms to develop like itchy, watery eyes, rashes, bumps, hives, coughing or sneezing. Latex allergies can also cause more severe and life-threatening symptoms, such as difficulty breathing or loss of consciousness---anaphylactic shock---a serious medical emergency requiring immediate medical attention.

Instructions

• 1

  Visit a doctor, preferably a dermatologist, to receive a physical examination. Your doctor will thoroughly examine your skin and possibly collect a small skin sample for the lab to analyze.

• 2

  Take a screening questionnaire to determine if you're sensitive to latex. Be prepared to answer questions about your medical history and report current symptoms to your doctor.

• 3

  Undergo a skin allergy test to screen for latex allergy. Your doctor will prick your arm with a microscopic amount of latex to try to produce an immediate allergic reaction.

• 4

  Request an allergy blood test--- called a radioallergosorbent (RAST) test---to be taken. Your doctor will take a sample to measure your blood count and total immunoglobulin E (IgE) to detect allergens present in your blood.

• 5

  Take X-rays and a CT scans to test for a latex allergy. If you have trouble breathing, these scans are useful in detecting abnormalities of the lungs and sinuses that latex could be causing.