Doha, June 29 (QNA) - Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) has launched two advanced diagnostic services for pediatric allergies: skin allergy testing to accurately identify food and environmental allergens, and food and drug challenge tests, the internationally recognized gold standard for confirming or ruling out allergic conditions under specialist medical supervision.

The services are provided through the pediatric clinics at the Ambulatory Care Center and aim to enhance the accuracy of early diagnosis, improve the quality of specialized care provided to children, and reduce allergy-related complications.

Dr. Mohammed Al Amri, Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Medical Director at Hamad General Hospital, and Chair of the Pediatrics Departments at HMC, emphasized that the launch of these two services reflects HMC's commitment to providing advanced diagnostic care that enhances children's health and empowers families to make treatment decisions based on accurate and reliable medical evidence.

The two services utilize more accurate and specialized diagnostic approaches in pediatric allergy, contributing to early diagnosis, reducing allergy-related complications, and supporting individualized treatment plans for each patient.

They also provide families with guidance and education on managing allergic conditions in children, including emergency action plans.

The clinic accepts referrals from Primary Health Care Centers, HMC hospitals, and Pediatric Emergency Centers for children aged 6 months to 14 years. It offers early diagnosis and specialized follow-up care through a multidisciplinary team specializing in pediatric allergy.

Skin allergy testing provides an accurate assessment of food and environmental allergies in children. It is one of the key tools used in diagnosing allergic conditions, as it helps doctors identify allergy triggers more precisely when combined with clinical evaluation and laboratory tests. Early and accurate diagnosis also helps prevent life-threatening allergic reactions such as anaphylaxis, in addition to supporting families and schools with clear plans for managing emergency situations.

The second service is the pediatric food and drug challenge testing clinic. Food challenge tests help reassess certain cases of food allergies in children. After appropriate medical evaluation, some foods can be safely reintroduced into the diets of certain children, even though they were previously avoided.

Regarding drug allergies, the clinic provides specialized drug allergy testing, including confirmation of penicillin allergy cases. Global studies have found that when patients diagnosed with “penicillin allergy” undergo a detailed specialist evaluation, a large proportion of them are not actually allergic, which highlights the importance of re-evaluating these cases as an important step to improve antibiotic use and avoid inappropriate treatments.

Dr. Aba Mohammed Al Kaabi, Senior Consultant and Section Head of Pediatric Allergy at Hamad General Hospital, emphasized the importance of early assessment of food allergy cases in children and the promotion of healthy nutrition practices, including the gradual and safe reintroduction of certain foods according to appropriate medical recommendations for each case.

She noted that early assessment not only protects the child’s health but also reduces the burden on families and provides them with official medical confirmation that contributes to improving their daily quality of life. (QNA)