ALCAT test
The ALCAT test, or antigen leukocyte antibody test, is one that claims to measure adverse reactions to dietary substances. It was created by American Medical Testing Laboratories and is now marketed by Cell Science Systems (also known as ALCAT Diagnostic Systems) of Deerfield Beach, Florida. The ALCAT tests your blood to figure out how sensitive your body is to over 220 different foods and additives. Additionally, it can test for some nutritional herbs and environmental toxins or molds.[1]
The test is not supported by research and is not considered to be a reliable medical diagnostic tool; since it has not been appropriately validated it is not a suitable guide for therapeutic decisions.[2][3][4][5][6][7] In a position statement, the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy classified the ALCAT with other forms of cytotoxic tests as inappropriate tests, saying of them
"These results have been shown to not be reproducible, give different results when duplicate samples are analysed blindly, don't correlate with those from conventional testing, and 'diagnose' food hypersensitivity in subjects with conditions where food allergy is not considered to play a pathogenic role."[8]
References
- ^ What is an ALCAT Test? New Spring M.D., December 2014
- ^ Wüthrich B (2005). "Unproven techniques in allergy diagnosis" (pdf). J Investig Allergol Clin Immunol. 15 (2): 86–90. PMID 16047707.
- ^ Gerez IF, Shek LP, Chng HH, Lee BW (January 2010). "Diagnostic tests for food allergy" (PDF). Singapore Med J. 51 (1): 4–9. PMID 20200768.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Mullins Raymond J, Heddle Robert J, Smith Pete (2005). "Non-conventional approaches to allergy testing: reconciling patient autonomy with medical practitioners' concerns". Med J Aust. 183 (4): 173–4. PMID 16097911.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Evaluation of the cytotoxic food test and the ALCAT (antigen leukocyte cellular antibody test)". Pol Merkur Lekarski. 2 (8): 154–9. 1997. PMID 9538667.
- ^ Yasuhara A, Yamazaki D (2003). "The method of utilizing food allergy test". Rinsho Byori. Suppl 127: 73–8. PMID 14653218.
- ^ Ito K (2008). "Practical diagnosis of food allergy". Arerugi. 57 (11): 1109–16. PMID 19052505.
- ^ "Unorthodox Techniques for the Diagnosis and Treatment of allergy, Asthma and Immune Disorders". Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy. November 2007. Retrieved 2012-10-09.