Deerfield, Ill.-- Siemens Healthcare today released new survey results revealing that 85 percent of mothers in the United States believe childhood allergies are a serious concern. Yet, when asked about testing their children for allergies, the survey shows that many mothers know little about the testing options available. Furthermore, more than one-third were not familiar with the accuracy of these tests, despite 93 percent indicating that accuracy was their top concern. The survey of over 1,000 U.S. mothers is part of a Siemens health initiative to raise awareness about this growing epidemic in America.

The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America states that allergic diseases are among the country's most common, yet often overlooked, chronic diseases. Allergy affects more than 50 million Americans and is now the third most common chronic disease among children under 18 years old.1 Depending on geography and lifestyle, the prevalence of allergies can be as high as 40 percent.2

Seventy-five percent of the surveyed mothers believe it is important for children at risk of developing allergies to be tested early. Research indicates that this is a critical step to aiding long-term quality of life. Early identification has been shown to facilitate prompt and effective treatment, and therefore help prevent the progression of allergies to asthma, a disease associated with significant economic costs, health risks and even morbidity and mortality.3
"If allergies go untreated, there is a higher probability that the child will develop additional, more severe symptoms, including asthma," said Dr. Terrence Zipfel, allergist and otorhinolaryngologist, East Liverpool, Ohio. "Fortunately, the results we can obtain from a simple blood allergy test can have a life-long impact and provide lifelong benefits."

Allergy testing methods available for children include blood tests, skin patch tests, skin injection and the skin prick/scratch test. The survey indicated that while most U.S. moms (75 percent) know of the skin prick/scratch test, only a half or a third of mothers are familiar with the other options. When questioned about the factors most important to them when testing their own children for allergies, 93 percent of the surveyed mothers cited accuracy as their top concern.

Other important survey findings include:

* An average of 1 in 3 mothers reported that they do not know how accurate the various allergy test results are.
* Of those who responded to testing accuracy, more mothers considered the blood test "highly accurate" (31 percent) compared to the skin prick/scratch test (28 percent), the skin injection test (26 percent), and the skin patch test (9 percent).

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