A comparison of specific IgE and skin prick test results to common environmental allergens using the HYTEC™ 288

Abstract Although skin-prick testing (SPT) is commonly used by allergists in the evaluation of allergy, in-vitro testing for specific IgE (sIgE) is an attractive alternate because it can be performed remotely and is of utility when SPT is contraindicated, as in patients on anti-histamines, or with dermatitis or severe eczema. It is, however, necessary to determine the extent of correlation between the in-vitro and in-vivo methods. In this study, we examined the qualitative concordance between SPT and sIgE as measured on the HYTEC™288 platform for 10 commonly encountered inhalant allergens in 232 subjects, and analysed the performance characteristics for the HYTEC™288. Overall concordance between SPT and sIgE was >70% for all allergens tested. Sensitivity ranged from 25% to 95%, depending on the allergen, while specificity was significantly higher for all allergens (78–97%). NPV was >85% for all allergens tested, while PPV was more variable, ranging from 22% to 88%. These results are similar to findings in other studies comparing SPT with sIgE. Lack of concordance in a percentage of samples might be partly attributed to differences in allergen preparations for SPT and HYTEC™ 288. Follow-up studies utilizing identical allergen preparations for both in-vivo and in-vitro testing may address these discrepancies.