Pharmacia Diagnostics - leading the world of allergy testing for over 25 years

Pharmacia Diagnostics AB develops, manufactures and markets complete blood test systems to support the clinical diagnosis and monitoring of allergy, asthma, and autoimmune diseases. The company has almost 1,000 employees in some 20 countries and is dedicated to improving the well-being and quality of life for people all over the world.

The company has been a leading manufacturer of in vitro testing systems for allergy since the discovery of Immunoglobulin E (IgE) in 1967, producing Phadebas RAST (RadioAllergoSorbent Test) in 1974. In the early 1990s, these tests were superseded by the Pharmacia ImmunoCAP® system.

Almost all of this production is exported to more than 3,000 laboratories in over 60 countries. Pharmacia Diagnostics has been the world leader in its field for over 25 years, and now supplies seven out of 10 of the world's allergy tests.

The ImmunoCAP® system works by measuring IgE antibodies to specific allergens in human serum or plasma. Specific IgE is produced as a result of sensitisation to an allergen, and can be detected following exposure to that substance. The allergen is bound to a solid-phase carrier called the ImmunoCAP® which offers a high surface area for the test, providing quantitative measurements of IgE antibodies with high precision and reproducibility. A central objective is to ensure that the products exceed industry quality standards.

Allergy and asthma are among the most widespread and costly health problems in the modern world. They are also on the increase and without proper diagnosis and management, the patient's condition may deteriorate over time. For effective treatment, doctors must first make sure whether or not a patient's symptoms are due to allergy or some other form of hypersensitivity. Testing for specific causative allergens therefore allows the doctor to recommend appropriate avoidance or management strategies to reduce patient exposure, unnecessary drug therapy, and ultimately costs to the health service. Pharmacia Diagnostics offer over 450 specific allergen tests including grasses, weeds, tree pollens, mites, micro-organisms, epidermals and animal proteins, foods, venoms, drugs and occupational allergens.

Allergen production is the responsibility of Allergon, a wholly owned subsidiary company based at Valinge in southern Sweden. They are world leaders in the collection and production of raw allergen material. Allergon supplies allergens to the manufacturing facility based in Uppsala, Sweden. The Pharmacia facility incorporates a state-of-the-art production plant as well as an automated cold store and distribution system which supplies products worldwide.

The centre of excellence for the development, production, and marketing of autoimmune tests is located in Freiburg, Germany. Here, a sophisticated production facility utilises recombinant antigen techniques to produce high-conformity antigens which guarantee high-quality assays with high sensitivity and specificity. The company markets over 50 different autoimmune tests, based on the latest research, including knowledge from our own R&D department.

Autoimmune diseases covered by these tests include:

The ability to detect antibodies in the patient's blood provides clinicians with an important diagnostic tool, and an early diagnosis can greatly improve the patient's quality of life.

Pharmacia Diagnostics is committed to improving the quality of management for patients with allergic or autoimmune conditions by providing high-quality products and services to laboratories, as well as primary- and secondary-care health professionals.

For further information, please contact Pharmacia Diagnostics, Davy Avenue, Knowlhill, Milton Keynes MK5 8PH

Telephone: 01908 603 798
Fax: 01908 603 799 
E-mail: diags.uk@pharmacia.com

 

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