Patterns of sensitization to food allergens among allergic adults and children following-up in Zagazig university hospitals, Egypt

INTRODUCTION It was thought that food allergy (FA) in the developing world was rare, but emerging epidemiological data have shown otherwise in the recent decade. This could be attributed to the previous under-recognition or underreporting of FA prevalence. Indeed, the health burden of food allergy is anticipated to rise substantially in the next decade. Food allergy present in different forms, including urticaria, angioedema, exacerbation of allergic rhinitis, asthma, or atopic dermatitis. Food allergic patients with asthma have a higher risk of developing life-threatening food-induced reactions and an asthmatic patient with a food allergy can have higher rates of morbidity and mortality associated with asthma. The most serious consequence of food allergy is anaphylaxis. Food allergy has significant deleterious effects on family economics, social interactions, school and work attendance, and health-related quality of life. Children with multiple food allergies face many nutritional problems as a consequence of an unsupervised elimination diet, which may lead to failure to thrive. There is a lack of reliable data regarding FA in most developing countries, including Egypt. 1,6 This study aimed to uncover some aspects of IgE mediated FA among the Egyptian population. We sought to explore the frequency of food sensitization among a sample of allergic patients and determine the common sensitizing food allergens among those patients.