Alergia a proteínas de leche de vaca en pacientes pediátricos: visión de la Sociedad Latinoamericana de Gastroenterología, Hepatología y Nutrición Pediátrica

Cow’s milk protein allergy (CMPA) is a clinical entity associated with an adverse immune response to some of cow’s milk protein fractions.1 It is a frequent problem in pediatric clinical practice and its complexity lies both in its pathophysiology, in which gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) is involved, and in a broad clinical spectrum, which besides gastrointestinal manifestations, can be expressed in the skin and upper and lower respiratory tracts.2,3 In a recent issue of the Revista de Gastroenterología de México,4 an original article was published, in which a survey was applied to explore the knowledge of pediatric gastroenterologists (PGs), members of the Latin American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition (LASPGHAN), regarding international consensuses and diagnostic guidelines on CMPA in pediatric patients, as well as the application of that knowledge in their clinical practice. A Latin American consensus and the diagnostic-therapeutic guidelines on CMPA formulated by PGs and published in 2012 and 2014, respectively, were the reference parameters utilized to determine the results of the survey.3,5 The central finding related to knowledge of the two documents was that, even though 79% of the physicians surveyed were familiar with them, only 17% used them as guides in their daily diagnostic-therapeutic approach. The knowledge of Latin American PGs about the international guidelines developed by expert academic groups in North America and the European Union6,7 was 37 percentage points lower than the