Cow's Milk Allergy Is a Major Contributor in Recurrent Perianal Dermatitis of Infants

Diagnosis and management of food allergy-induced constipation in young children-An EAACI position paper

The recognition of constipation as a possible non-Immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated allergic condition is challenging because functional constipation (unrelated to food allergies) is a common health problem with a reported worldwide prevalence rate of up to 32.2% in children. However, many studies in children report challenge proven cow's milk allergy and constipation as a primary symptom and have found that between 28% and 78% of children improve on a cow's milk elimination diet. Due to the paucity of data and a focus on IgE-mediated allergy, not all food allergy guidelines list constipation as a symptom of food allergy. Yet, it is included in all cow's milk allergy guidelines available in English language. The Exploring Non-IgE-Mediated Allergy (ENIGMA) Task Force (TF) of the European Academy for Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) considers in this paper constipation in the context of failure of standard treatment and discuss the role of food allergens as culprit in constipation in children. This position paper used the Delphi approach in reaching consensus on both diagnosis and management, as currently published data are insufficient to support a systematic review.

Cows' Milk Allergy-Associated Constipation: When to Look for It? A Narrative Review

Constipation is a very common disorder, mostly functional in nature, that may persist for years in up to 35-52% of children. Food allergy prevalence, severity and persistence are increasing over time, and cows' milk protein is the commonest food allergen recognised to affect gastrointestinal motility in children. There is mounting evidence of the role of cows' milk (CM) allergy (CMA) in children with constipation. With this narrative review, we aim to provide clinicians with an updated and critical overview of food allergy-associated constipation. We searched Embase, Medline and the Cochrane Library, using keywords related to the topic. Only reviews and studies including children aged 0-17 years that were published in English were considered. Constipation has been reported in 4.6% of infants with CMA; the prevalence of food allergy underlying chronic constipation in children resistant to conventional treatment and presenting to tertiary clinics ranges between 28% and 78%. The identification of predisposing risk factors and of a specific phenotype of food allergy-induced constipation remains elusive. No allergic tests, radiological or motility investigations achieve sufficient sensitivity and specificity to screen children for CMA-related constipation. A 4-week cows' milk protein (CMP) elimination diet may be considered for children with chronic constipation resistant to conventional treatment and who lack alarm sign/symptoms of organic diseases. In subjects with ameliorated symptoms on CMP elimination, the diagnosis of CMA should be confirmed by a food challenge to avoid an unnecessary protracted diet.

The clinical burden of cow's milk allergy in early childhood: A retrospective cohort study

Introduction

Cow's milk allergy (CMA) is common in infants and children. Clinical presentations may vary, with a range of symptoms affecting the gastrointestinal (GI), skin and respiratory systems. Whilst the primary focus of research to date has been on the management of these symptoms, studies investigating the broader clinical burden of CMA are limited.

Methods

We performed a retrospective matched cohort study examining clinical data, including allergic symptoms and infections, extracted from case records within The Health Improvement Network database. A total of 6998 children (54% male) were included in the study, including 3499 with CMA (mean age at diagnosis 4.04 months) and 3499 matched controls without CMA, observed for a mean period of 4.2 years.

Results

GI, skin and respiratory symptoms affected significantly more children with CMA (p < .001), which recurred more often (p < .001), compared with children without CMA. More children with CMA had symptoms affecting multiple systems (p < .001). CMA was associated with a greater probability of these symptoms requiring hypoallergenic formula (HAF) prescription persisting over time (log‐rank test p < .0001, unadjusted hazard ratio [HR]: 0.81, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.76–0.85, p < .001), with a longer median duration of symptoms and HAF prescription compared with the duration of symptoms in those without CMA (3.48 vs. 2.96 years). GI, skin, respiratory and ear infections affected significantly more children with CMA than those without, increasing by 74% (p < .001), 20% (p < .001), 9% (p < .001), and 30% (p < .001) respectively. These infections also recurred more often among children with CMA, increasing by 62% for GI infections, 37% for skin and respiratory infections, and 44% for ear infections (p < .001).

Conclusions

This real‐world study provides evidence to suggest that CMA presents a significant clinical burden to children, which has implications for the healthcare system. Further research is warranted to understand the health economic impact of this, and the phenotypes, factors and management approaches which may affect clinical outcomes.

German S1 guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of perianal dermatitis (anal eczema)

Perianal dermatitis (anal eczema, perianal eczema) is one of the most common proctological conditions. It may occur as a sequela or a presenting symptom of various proctological, dermatological, allergic or pathogen-induced disorders. The three main types of anal eczema are irritant-toxic, atopic and allergic contact dermatitis. Adequate and successful treatment requires a comprehensive diagnostic workup to determine disease etiology and includes treatment/elimination of causative factors as well as nonpharmacological interventions (avoidance of aggravating factors). In addition, adjuvant topical anti-inflammatory and/or specific symptomatic treatment may be required. The present guidelines contain recommendations for the diagnostic and therapeutic management of perianal dermatitis. Target users of these guidelines are clinicians in the fields of dermatology and proctology, as well as all other specialties involved in the management of patients with perianal dermatitis, both in hospital and office-based settings.