Useful For

Establishing a diagnosis of an allergy to honeybee, paper wasp, yellow jacket, yellow hornet, and white-faced hornet venoms

Defining the allergen responsible for eliciting signs and symptoms

Identifying allergens:

-Responsible for allergic response or anaphylactic episode

-To confirm sensitization prior to beginning immunotherapy

-To investigate the specificity of allergic reactions to insect venom allergens, drugs, or chemical allergens

This test is not useful for patients previously treated with immunotherapy to determine if residual clinical sensitivity exists, or in patients in whom the medical management does not depend upon identification of allergen specificity.