Many false diagnoses of cow's milk allergy

Wrong diagnosis of cow milk allergy relatively often, according to a study

05/22/2013

Every 100th child suffers from cow's milk allergy. Children most often fall ill at the age of one. However, many children with a suspected cow's milk allergy are also misdiagnosed. Scientists from Israel have analyzed the most common mistakes. The Israeli medical team wanted to know if certain traits were particularly associated with such misdiagnoses.

They evaluated a cohort of 13,234 newborns. In 243 children, the diagnosis "cow's milk allergy" was wrongly made. (Arch Dis Child 2013, Online March 26).

The children with "real" IgE-mediated cow milk diarrhea first fell ill until the third to fourth month of life. In contrast, the majority of children with "false" cow's milk allergy had symptoms in the first three months of life - many even in the first two months.

IgE-mediated food allergies usually manifest on multiple organs such as skin, respiratory and gastrointestinal tract. On the other hand, the children who had been misdiagnosed had predominantly only one organ system symptoms.
The researchers call for a thorough investigation for any child suspected of having cow's milk allergy. They argue that the diagnosis of cow's milk allergy - except after an anaphylactic reaction - depends on an oral provocation test. (Pm)

Picture: Lupo