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Prevalence of latex allergy in the community at age 7 years

G Roberts1, G Lack, K Northstone

  • 1Paediatric Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, Imperial College at St Mary's, London, UK. g.c.roberts@soton.ac.uk

Clinical and Experimental Allergy : Journal of the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology
|March 24, 2005
PubMed

Insights

Childhood latex allergy prevalence is very low in the UK. This study found only 0.2% of children were sensitized to latex, with no clinical reactions observed.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Allergy and Immunology
  • Epidemiology
  • Immunology

Background:

  • Latex allergy has emerged as a concern in pediatric populations, particularly in children with conditions like spina bifida.
  • The true prevalence of latex allergy within the general UK child population remains largely unknown.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To determine the prevalence of latex allergy in the general childhood population.
  • To assess the incidence of latex sensitization and clinical latex allergy in children.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, a geographically based prospective cohort.
  • Conducted skin prick testing for latex sensitization in children at seven years of age.

Main Results:

  • Out of 1877 children tested, four subjects (0.2%) showed sensitization to latex.
  • No participants reported a history of clinical reactions to latex, indicating a 0.0% prevalence of clinical allergy.

Conclusions:

  • The prevalence of latex sensitization in the general UK childhood population is estimated at 0.2%.
  • Clinical latex allergy appears to be extremely rare in the general childhood population, with a prevalence of 0.0%.
Abstract

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