Food allergy as a cause of rhinitis and/or asthma.
We studied the histories of patients who had visited our Department during the last 5 years, presenting food allergy with exclusively respiratory symptoms (18.5%). We studied the correlation between IgE levels and the histamine release test and the type of food implicated. Seventy-seven percent of patients presented sensitization to one food, and 23% presented polysensitization. We found that foods such as snails and eggs have a strong predilection for the bronchial tree as the shock organ. High total IgE was found in 85.2% of patients. The histamine release test was positive in 66% of cases. We conclude that this is a highly sensitive method for the in vitro diagnosis of food allergy.
Oehling
A
A
Department of Allergology and Clinical Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Navarra, Pamplona, Spain.
García
B
B
Santos
F
F
Córdoba
H
H
Diéguez
I
I
Fernández
M
M
Sanz
M L
ML
D000485:Allergens; D001249:Asthma / Q000209:etiology* / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D005502:Food; D005512:Food Hypersensitivity / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000276:immunology; D006636:Histamine Release; D006801:Humans; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000097:blood; D007159:Immunologic Tests; D008297:Male; D012221:Rhinitis, Allergic, Perennial / Q000209:etiology* / Q000276:immunology
D000485:Allergens; D007073:Immunoglobulin E