Call us (08) 9313 5171
Call us (08) 9313 5171
Dr. Colin Somerville is a highly trained physician specializing in Allergies in adults and children. He provides expert diagnosis, treatment and management of a range of diseases including anaphylaxis, asthma, eczema, eosinophilic oesophagitis, drug allergies, food allergies and intolerances, hay fever, insect sting allergy, urticarial (hives) and sinusitis. Dr. Somerville graduated in Medicine from the University of Western Australia in 1986. He is a Fellow of the Royal Australian College of Physicians and a member of the Australian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy. Dr. Somerville strives to keep up with the latest developments in allergic diseases so you can be assured that he will diagnose and manage your condition with the best treatment available.
Dr Jack Bourke is a Clinical Immunologist and Allergist who trained in Western Australia. Jack is able to see adult patients for diagnosis and management of allergic diseases, autoimmune disorders or immunodeficiency. He also sees children aged 6 years and over for allergies. Jack graduated from the University of Western Australia in 2004. After completing his basic physician training he undertook specialist training in Clinical Immunology and Allergy, and gained broad clinical experience while working in the various adult and paediatric tertiary hospitals in Perth. Jack is also a member of the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy, and is currently part of the ASCIA Drug Allergy Working Party. As well as working at Allergy West, Jack is also a Consultant Immunologist at Fiona Stanley Hospital.
If you think you or someone in your family may be suffering with an allergic condition please call to make an appointment. (Please note if you intend to claim any rebate from Medicare for your consultation you will need to obtain a referral from your General Practitioner first).
64 Farrington Rd, Leeming, WA 6149
8:30am-5:30pm
Thursday8:30am-4:30pm
If you think you or someone in your family may be suffering with an allergic condition please call to make an appointment.
(Please note if you intend to claim any rebate from Medicare for your consultation you will need to obtain a referral from your General Practitioner first).
The immune system is a complex network of cells and proteins that defend the body against infection. Allergy occurs when the immune system over reacts to a normally tolerated substance in the diet or environment.
Allergists are Medically Trained Specialists who can help to identify and treat the diseases that result from this kind of reaction.
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This will depend upon the type of allergy test you have and the number of allergens tested for. Please contact us on 9313 5171 and we can discuss this in detail with you.
Allergy tests can be done at any age from birth.
Referrals from your GP last for 12 months, less if they are from a specialist, it is your responsibility to make sure you have a current referral when you attend. Unfortunately we cannot accept indefinite referrals.
If there is a food or substance you think you may have had an allergic reaction to, it is a good idea to bring it with you to the consultation. If you have a rash, it is a good idea to take a photograph of it and bring that with you in case the rash has gone by the time of your appointment.
You must ALWAYS wait a minimum of 30 minutes at the doctors after your shot, before you leave. Your doctor/nurse should check your injection site each time. It is NORMAL to develop a large red swelling in the arm, however, any WHITE area (whelt) in the centre of this red area should be measured and the size recorded. Your dose may need to be reduced if this whelt is too big. If you have any breathing difficulty or other symptoms, apart from swelling in the arm, IMMEDIATELY notify your doctor.
Generally, you can be up to one week late for your shot without it making any difference to your treatment programme. If you are any later, please ask your doctor/nurse to contact Dr Somerville to discuss a change to your dosage and treatment plan. It is better if we speak directly to the doctor or nurse concerned.
Usually, we have allergen in stock and can supply it to you within 24 hours, Monday - Thursday. Serums can be picked up from us directly or we can post it to you. Call us on 9313 5171 to order it during our normal working hours. It is important that you are not given part doses if there is insufficient serum in the vial. Always check with your nurse/doctor that there is enough serum for the next dose, before you leave the surgery.
It is very important to realize that medicare states, if you wish to claim any rebate from them for the cost of visiting a Specialist like Dr Somerville you must have a valid referral from your General Practitioner. Please make sure you always obtain a new referral before your appointment with us. If you are uncertain when your referral expires please contact us and ask for the date of the original referral. Most referrals are valid for 12 months from this time. Medicare will not accept referrals that are dated after your visit.
You must ensure that you do not take any medications that can interfere with allergy tests in the 48 hours before your appointment. These include mainly antihistamines like Claratyne, Telfast, Zyrtec, Xyzal, Polaramine, Phenergan or Vallergan. If you are not sure whether or not the drug you are taking is an antihistamine please contact us to find out. Many cold and flu treatments contain antihistamines. Anti-depressants and anti-migraine medication can also interfere with testing and are best avoided for 48 hours.
We ask that you don't apply any lotions, creams, bath oils or soaps etc, to the skin of your arms for 40 hours prior. These make application of allergy drops to the skin very difficult and can make it almost impossible to perform an adequate test.
It is very important to realize that medicare states, if you wish to claim any rebate from them for the cost of visiting a Specialist like Dr Somerville you must have a valid referral from your General Practitioner. Please make sure you always obtain a new referral before your appointment with us. If you are uncertain when your referral expires please contact us and ask for the date of the original referral. Most referrals are valid for 12 months from this time. Medicare will not accept referrals that are dated after your visit.
You must ensure that you do not take any medications that can interfere with allergy tests in the 48 hours before your appointment. These include mainly antihistamines like Claratyne, Telfast, Zyrtec, Xyzal, Polaramine, Phenergan or Vallergan. If you are not sure whether or not the drug you are taking is an antihistamine please contact us to find out. Many cold and flu treatments contain antihistamines. Anti-depressants and anti-migraine medication can also interfere with testing and are best avoided for 48 hours.
We ask that you don't apply any lotions, creams, bath oils or soaps etc, to the skin of your arms for 40 hours prior. These make application of allergy drops to the skin very difficult and can make it almost impossible to perform an adequate test.
On the day of your consultation Dr Somerville will spend some time taking a history from you before deciding what type of testing you require. Most allergy test results are available with 10 – 15 minutes after the test being applied. A treatment plan can generally be devised before you leave on the day of the consultation. Please allocate at least an hour for your visit and remember that doctors often run late because of unforeseen circumstances. Please feel free to contact us by telephone to find out whether or not your appointment is likely to be on time or not.
Many food, drug or environmental allergies can be tested for by placing a small drop of the substance on the skin of the forearm, then giving it a light scratch. This test is safe and reliable when performed by a specially trained expert like an Allergist. Results are available within 10-15 minutes of the test being applied. Tests can be done at any age from birth to 100 plus.
Knowing what you are allergic to can help to avoid this substance in future and help you to determine whether you might benefit from allergy shots or not.
Sometimes your doctor may order a blood allergy test (RAST). These are good screening tools for identifying patients who may have allergies, however they don't allow the same number of tests to be done as a skin prick test and are generally not as accurate. The skin prick test is the gold standard for assessing allergies.
If your skin reacts badly to things like shampoos, cosmetics, or metals then you will need to have a patch test done. With this test a range of chemicals are taped to your back and left in place for 48 hours. This requires two appointments on two separate days and you cannot have a shower in between or do too much strenuous exercise that might effect the test on your back. This type of testing assesses slow developing reactions as compared to the skin prick test, which is for more rapidly developing allergy symptoms. Once the patch is removed from your back your Allergist can advise which substances you are allergic to and help you to plan how to avoid them in the future. This testing is sometimes also used to look for delayed type, food allergies, as in conditions like eosinophilic oesophagitis.
If you are diagnosed as having an allergy to common environmental agents like grass pollens, dust mite or pet fur, and if your symptoms are not responding to the usual medications prescribed by your doctor or pharmacist, then it is likely that Dr Somerville will advise you to undergo a treatment of allergy injections (shots). Whatever substances you are proven to be allergic to on testing can be made into a solution and then increasing amounts of this are injected back into you. Initially at weekly, then monthly intervals over a period of 2-3 years. These injections can be given by your own doctor at your local surgery, they are virtually painless and are far more effective and generally less expensive than the use of daily antihistamines and nasal sprays. They can be given at any age from about 3 years onwards. Unfortunately this treatment is not available for food allergies yet.
It is very important to realize that medicare states, if you wish to claim any rebate from them for the cost of visiting a Specialist like Dr Somerville you must have a valid referral from your General Practitioner. Please make sure you always obtain a new referral before your appointment with us. If you are uncertain when your referral expires please contact us and ask for the date of the original referral. Most referrals are valid for 12 months from this time. Medicare will not accept referrals that are dated after your visit.
You must ensure that you do not take any medications that can interfere with allergy tests in the 48 hours before your appointment. These include mainly antihistamines like Claratyne, Telfast, Zyrtec, Xyzal, Polaramine, Phenergan or Vallergan. If you are not sure whether or not the drug you are taking is an antihistamine please contact us to find out. Many cold and flu treatments contain antihistamines. Anti-depressants and anti-migraine medication can also interfere with testing and are best avoided for 48 hours.
We ask that you don't apply any lotions, creams, bath oils or soaps etc, to the skin of your arms for 40 hours prior. These make application of allergy drops to the skin very difficult and can make it almost impossible to perform an adequate test.
On the day of your consultation Dr Somerville will spend some time taking a history from you before deciding what type of testing you require. Most allergy test results are available with 10 – 15 minutes after the test being applied. A treatment plan can generally be devised before you leave on the day of the consultation. Please allocate at least an hour for your visit and remember that doctors often run late because of unforeseen circumstances. Please feel free to contact us by telephone to find out whether or not your appointment is likely to be on time or not.
Many food, drug or environmental allergies can be tested for by placing a small drop of the substance on the skin of the forearm, then giving it a light scratch. This test is safe and reliable when performed by a specially trained expert like an Allergist. Results are available within 10-15 minutes of the test being applied. Tests can be done at any age from birth to 100 plus.
Knowing what you are allergic to can help to avoid this substance in future and help you to determine whether you might benefit from allergy shots or not.
Sometimes your doctor may order a blood allergy test (RAST). These are good screening tools for identifying patients who may have allergies, however they don't allow the same number of tests to be done as a skin prick test and are generally not as accurate. The skin prick test is the gold standard for assessing allergies.
If your skin reacts badly to things like shampoos, cosmetics, or metals then you will need to have a patch test done. With this test a range of chemicals are taped to your back and left in place for 48 hours. This requires two appointments on two separate days and you cannot have a shower in between or do too much strenuous exercise that might effect the test on your back. This type of testing assesses slow developing reactions as compared to the skin prick test, which is for more rapidly developing allergy symptoms. Once the patch is removed from your back your Allergist can advise which substances you are allergic to and help you to plan how to avoid them in the future. This testing is sometimes also used to look for delayed type, food allergies, as in conditions like eosinophilic oesophagitis.
If you are diagnosed as having an allergy to common environmental agents like grass pollens, dust mite or pet fur, and if your symptoms are not responding to the usual medications prescribed by your doctor or pharmacist, then it is likely that Dr Somerville will advise you to undergo a treatment of allergy injections (shots). Whatever substances you are proven to be allergic to on testing can be made into a solution and then increasing amounts of this are injected back into you. Initially at weekly, then monthly intervals over a period of 2-3 years. These injections can be given by your own doctor at your local surgery, they are virtually painless and are far more effective and generally less expensive than the use of daily antihistamines and nasal sprays. They can be given at any age from about 3 years onwards. Unfortunately this treatment is not available for food allergies yet.
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