What is an allergist?
An allergist/immunologist is a physician who specializes in allergic disease, asthma, and disorders of the immune system.
Becoming one takes at least nine years of training after college. Four years of medical school, then a three-year residency in internal medicine or pediatrics. After residency the physician sits a board examination — the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) or the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) — to become board certified in that specialty.
Allergy and immunology then requires a two-year fellowship. At the end of fellowship, another certifying examination from the American Board of Allergy and Immunology (ABAI). Allergists who complete this path are trained to care for both adults and children.
What allergists treat
Common problems include nasal allergies, asthma, food allergy, anaphylaxis (a severe generalized allergic reaction), chronic sinusitis, and hives (urticaria). Less common ones include hereditary angioedema, mastocytosis, eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (formerly called Churg-Strauss syndrome), hypereosinophilic syndrome, and inherited primary immunodeficiency diseases.
Asthma and anaphylaxis can be life-threatening if they are not managed. Allergic rhinitis and hives are not usually dangerous in that way, but they can wear people down at work, at school, and at night. The job is to sort cause from coincidence, then treat the actual problem.
What testing is actually like
Skin testing is the most sensitive everyday way to identify IgE-mediated allergy. The usual first step is a prick test on the surface of the skin. It is not a needle in the arm. If you are allergic to what was placed, a small itchy hive-like bump can appear within about 15 minutes. Most people find it far milder than they expected.