What does elevated immunoglobulin E levels indicate?

Question

Hi doctor,

I have been suffering from cold for the last three years. I consulted an Ayurvedic doctor, and she advised me an allergy test and CBC, and the report was somewhat not good. My IgE result is 1157.00, and it should be below 64. Is there any serious problem?

Answer 1

Hi,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

I have gone through your query regarding your cold for three years. As you had asked about allergy, here I would like to say that allergic cold has three cardinal features (watery nasal discharge, bouts of sneezing, and nasal obstruction of both side nasal cavity). Second, allergic cold is always precipitated by some triggers like dust, the smell of perfumes, sudden change of temperature, etc. Your diagnosis is made on a single investigation, so if you are having above cardinal symptoms, and there is some trigger to aggravate the cold, then only consider it as an allergic cold. There are few other nasal diseases which present as cold these are: 1. Sinusitis. 2. Grossly deviated nasal septum. 3. Nasal polyp. 4. Rhinitis with turbinate hypertrophy. There are possibility that you may be having any of above disease and these may be easily ruled out by thorough examination by an ENT doctor, and there may be need of clinical co-relation of following basic investigations. 1. CT (computerized tomography) scan of paranasal sinuses. 2. Culture and sensitivity of nasal swab. So my advice is that you should consult an ENT doctor for examination and relevant investigations to find out the cause of your chronic cold and accordingly that may be managed. Presently, prescription nasal spray for allergies are available which are effective in relieving nasal congestion with minimal side effects.