Milk allergy is the most common childhood food allergy, affecting 2.5% of children younger than 3 years of age.¹ According to research presented at the 2011 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI), one-third of participating children had resolved their milk allergy by 30 months of follow up. The study authors also found that certain factors seem to best predict the likelihood of resolution.
In conjunction with another study, researchers from Duke, Johns Hopkins, Mount Sinai, National Jewish and the University of Arkansas enrolled over 500 children between the ages of 3 and 15 months. The participating children had either a convincing history of egg or milk allergy with a positive prick skin test to the trigger food and/or moderate-severe atopic dermatitis and a positive prick skin test to milk or egg.
From this sample, 244 children were milk allergic at baseline. Milk allergy was based upon clinical history and food-specific IgE with resolution established by successful ingestion of the trigger food.
Of the 244 children, 89 had outgrown their food allergy by month 30 of follow-up, indicating a 39.6% probability of milk allergy resolution. The median age at resolution was 2 years.
In addition, several baseline factors were found to be associated with resolution of milk allergy in the participating children. These were lower milk IgE, a smaller wheal from the prick skin test and mild-none versus moderate-severe atopic dermatitis.
“This study is the first longitudinal, multi-center investigation of the natural history of milk allergy,” said Robert A. Wood, MD, FAAAAI, one of the study authors. “The data provided, especially about the factors that may best predict the potential resolution of milk allergy, will help clinicians counsel parents on this condition that has dramatic effects on the entire family’s quality of life.”
Source: American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI)