[Clinical and diagnostic contribution of childhood food allergy]

Two thousand six hundred and ninety are reviewed and 148 cases of food allergy are found, aged 1 month to 14 years. Food allergy is 5.5%. Diagnosis was based on history, positive of dietary elimination-challenge and immunological investigations (skin tests, total serum IgE and RAST). Ninety four children (64%) were multisensitized. Ninety three children (63%) had multisystem involvement. The onset of iron deficiency anemia without responsive to the therapy was the manifestation in 7.8% of cow's milk protein or egg allergy children. There were not significative different between breast or bottle fed children. The symptoms occurred at the first known exposure to egg in 23.7% of egg hypersensitivity children and the same feature was observed in 17% of fish allergic children. The date indicate that food allergy has a clinical complexity. It may be useful to make easy its diagnosis to know some aspects regarding to sensitisation, immunological mechanism, effects of breast-feeding and pathogenesis of iron deficiency anemia without responsive to the therapy, an uncommon manifestation of food allergy.