NIAID Issues Comprehensive Food Allergy Guidelines

BALTIMOREThe National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) released the first-ever comprehensive U.S. guidelines designed to help doctors diagnose and treat food allergies.

Food allergy is a rising health concern in the United States, affecting nearly 5 percent of children younger than age 5 and 4 percent of teens and adultsabout 10 million to 12 million people. Currently, there is no treatment for food allergy; the disease only can be managed by allergen avoidance or treatment of symptoms. The diagnosis of food allergy also may be difficult because non-allergic food reactions, such as food intolerance, are often mistakenly classified as food allergies.

The most common food allergens in the United States are milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, wheat and soy. Milk and eggs are the two most common allergies seen in pediatric patients; however, 80 percent of children outgrow them.

To address these concerns, NIAID worked with 34 professional organizations, federal agencies and patient advocacy groups to develop concise clinical guidelines for healthcare professionals on the diagnosis and management of food allergy and the treatment of acute food allergy reactions.

Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Food Allergy in the United States: Report of the NIAID-sponsored Expert Panel" appeared in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology and serves to establish consistency in terminology and definitions, diagnostic criteria and patient management practices. They are designed for both generalists and specialists in areas such as allergy, pediatrics, family medicine, internal medicine, dermatology, gastroenterology, emergency medicine, and pulmonary and critical care medicine.

Additional topics covered by the guidelines include the prevalence of food allergy, natural history of food allergy and closely associated diseases, and management of acute allergic reactions to food, including anaphylaxis, a severe whole-body reaction. They also identify gaps about what is known about food allergy.

Food allergy affects millions of Americans, and these individuals seek care from a wide variety of health care providers," says NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, MD. Because these guidelines provide standardized, concise recommendations on how to diagnose and manage food allergy and treat acute food allergy reactions across specialties, we expect both clinicians and food allergy patients to greatly benefit from these clear state-of-the-science clinical standards."

A lay language synopsis of the guidelines will be available in early 2011.