Latex allergy: prevalence, risk factors, and cross-reactivity

There are few little exact epidemiological data on the prevalence and incidence of latex allergy, partly because the diagnostic tools are unsatisfactory and partly because the epidemiological study planning often does not fulfill criteria of good praxis. On the basis of present data, latex allergy in normal population is low, under 1%. Known risk groups such as health care workers, atopic subjects, people with hand dermatitis, and especially spina bifida patients show higher prevalence numbers. The common serological cross-reactivity between latex and a great number of different fruits and vegetables is bound to common plant pathogenesis-related proteins and storage proteins. Despite positive serological tests, only about half of NRL-allergic subjects have clinical symptoms after eating cross-reacting foods.