Food Allergy in Children. Recommendations on How to Prevent, Diagnose and Treat

Abstract

Clinicians must know the different adverse reactions to food. There are toxic reactions and non-toxic reactions without immune mediation. Food allergy divides into two groups: the mediated IgE food allergy in which an immediate clinic occurs upon contact with the allergen y non-IgE-mediated food allergy, symptoms overlap with other diseases and could be more insidious.

Most food allergies develop in the first two years of age, peaking at 8% at the age of one year. The main causal foods in children are milk, egg and fish.

The basis of allergy diagnosis is the medical history in which suspected allergy symptoms should be recorded hives, asthma, atopic dermatitis, anaphylaxis…

The additional tests must then be carried out: (prick test, oral challernge trial, elimination diet) and “in vitro”, (allergen-specific Immunoglobulin E (IgE)  and component resolved diagnosis by microarrays. After diagnosis, the patient should be monitored until the natural acquisition of food tolerance is achieved, but if it is not, a hyposensibilization treatment must be initiated (specific oral immunotherapy and conventional immunotherapy in some cases.)

It should not be forgotten that the patient with food allergy shoud be sensitized to other foods. In children allergic to milk, a plan must be established in order to introduce solid eating progressively and allergic symptomatology should be monitored if it appears. Optimal follow-up of a child with food allergy requires the collaboration of the pediatrician and allergist and get to the right etiology with valid diagnostic techniques