How to diagnose food allergy

Area of Science:

• Allergy and Immunology
• Diagnostic Medicine
• Food Science

Background:

• IgE-mediated food allergies require accurate diagnostic methods.
• Specific immunoglobulin E (sIgE) testing and basophil activation tests (BAT) are key diagnostic tools.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review recent studies on sIgE testing and BAT for diagnosing IgE-mediated food allergies.
• To evaluate the role of component-resolved diagnostics (CRD) in allergy diagnosis.

Main Methods:

• Review of recent scientific literature on sIgE, BAT, and CRD in food allergy diagnosis.
• Analysis of diagnostic accuracy, positive predictive values (PPV), and clinical utility of various testing methods.

Main Results:

• sIgE and BAT can predict food reactivity and improve diagnostic accuracy.
• CRD offers superior diagnostic markers (e.g., Ara h 2 for peanut, Ovomucoid for egg) compared to allergen extracts.
• BAT may show higher specificity than skin prick tests and sIgE testing.

Conclusions:

• sIgE testing and BAT are valuable for diagnosing food allergies.
• CRD provides crucial information to guide decisions on performing oral food challenges (OFCs).
• These advanced diagnostics improve the overall accuracy and efficiency of food allergy diagnosis.