State Sues Allergy Clinic Chain Over Tests

Prompted by California health officials, the attorney general’s office has filed suit against a chain of allergy clinics, charging the businesses with eight counts of misconduct ranging from false advertising to practicing medicine without a license.

The suit was filed July 10 against the Medical Service Center chain, which has clinics in San Diego (at 6386 Alvarado Court), Irvine, Bakersfield and Fresno.

In addition, the attorney general in Washington state has filed a suit charging the firm’s Seattle clinic with the same eight charges.

The clinics offer nutritional counseling based on cytotoxic tests that detect allergies and toxic reactions. The laboratory tests combine a patient’s white blood cells with food derivatives and chemicals often found in food products. If the cells survive the mixture, the foodstuff is considered safe. If not, the food is said to be nutritionally incompatible and the subject is advised to avoid the food for two months.

The suit alleges that advice of this kind is illegal.

The tests are given by nurse’s aides, nutritional counselors or “support employees.” The problem is that none of the employees holds a medical degree or license, the suit claims. The centers require patients to consult with a certified medical doctor before testing, but the lawsuit claims maintain that this is insufficient.

In the past, nutritional counseling was not governed by the state, but the recent rise in popularity of cytotoxic testing prompted state health officials to reevaluate the testing requirements, said William Argonza, an examiner for the state Department of Health Services.

Early this year the department issued new regulations requiring food allergy testing clinics to apply for licenses. Other allergy clinics are required to apply for licenses because testing is usually followed by a series of shots or prescription drugs. There are no drugs involved in cytotoxic testing.

But despite its drug-free process, cytotoxic allergy testing has been the subject of criticism since it was first discovered nearly 30 years ago. When the test was first put to use in the early 1960s, many medical groups rejected the test, saying that its results were too varied to be accurate. Tests taken during different time periods often produced varying results.

Mark Lovendale, founder and director of Medical Service Centers, said that the varying results are caused by changes in an individual’s body, not changes in the testing process. Standard allergy tests produce consistent results, he admitted.

Also, many allergists and immunologists avoid using the cytotoxic test because it uncovers sensitivities that do not surface in standard tests.

But Lovendale said that this is one of the test’s advantages. The cytotoxic test can uncover allergies and sensitivities that other allergists might overlook, he said.

Lovendale said he plans to continue operating his San Diego clinic despite the lawsuit. The attorney general’s office has filed for a restraining order but a spokesman said the case is not scheduled for review until next year.