title: Ketotic hypoglycemia in patients with allergic diseases.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Ketotic hypoglycemia is the most common cause of recurrent hypoglycemia in early childhood but its etiology is poorly understood. Elimination diets have been used for the prevention or treatment of some allergic diseases; however, these diets entail a risk to the normal nutrition and growth of children. The present study investigated whether elimination diets are related to the occurrence of ketotic hypoglycemia.
  
  
  METHODS
  The prevalence of allergy treated with elimination diet therapy was retrospectively investigated in 18 patients with ketotic hypoglycemia seen in Yamaguchi University Hospital between January 1995 and September 1999. Data were gathered by reviewing the patients' medical charts.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Ten (55.6%) of 18 patients with ketotic hypoglycemia had allergic diseases. Six (60%) of the patients had been treated with strict elimination diets and the others were on incomplete elimination diets for the prevention of allergy. The ketotic hypoglycemia patients with allergic diseases had experienced fewer pre-existing infectious diseases than those without allergic diseases.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients with allergic diseases treated with elimination diets have a relatively high tendency towards developing ketotic hypoglycemia. They might have a lower capacity to tolerate fasting due to their excessive avoidance of many foods, even during periods when they are not undergoing strict elimination diets.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Yamaguchi University School of Medicine, Ube, Yamaguchi, Japan. tmatsu@yamaguchi-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Tomoyo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Matsubara
authors.forename: Tomomi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yoshitomi
authors.forename: Miho
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kaneko
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ichiyama
authors.forename: Susumu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Furukawa
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D015362:Child Nutrition Disorders / Q000150:complications*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000178:diet therapy*; D007003:Hypoglycemia / Q000209:etiology*; D007223:Infant; D007662:Ketosis / Q000209:etiology*; D008297:Male