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Recurrent reactions to food among children at paediatric emergency departments
Author(s) -
Vetander M.,
Ly D. H.,
Håkansson N.,
Lilja G.,
Nilsson C.,
Östblom E.,
Wickman M.,
Bergström A.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
clinical and experimental allergy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.462
H-Index - 154
eISSN - 1365-2222
pISSN - 0954-7894
DOI - 10.1111/cea.12203
Subject(s) - medicine , emergency department , food allergy , medical prescription , incidence (geometry) , confidence interval , hazard ratio , pediatrics , relative risk , allergy , physics , psychiatry , optics , immunology , pharmacology
Summary Background Knowledge about repeated food reactions in paediatric emergency departments ( ED ) is sparse. Objective To investigate the incidence and potential risk factors for repeated ED visits for food‐allergic reactions among children with a prior ED visit due to reactions to food. Methods A total of 358 children with ED visits at paediatric hospitals in Stockholm due to reactions to foods during 2007 (index‐reaction) were investigated in relation to recurrent reactions until 30 June 2010. Adjusted Cox proportional hazard models were used to compute relative risks ( RR ) and 95% confidence intervals ( CI ). Results A total of 80 children had 116 ED revisits over a period of 873 patient‐years, yielding an incidence rate of 9 per 100 patient‐years. Known food allergy before the index ED visit in 2007 increased the risk for ED revisits ( RR = 2.30, 95% CI 1.35–3.94). Likewise, prescription of adrenaline auto‐injector before the index‐reaction increased the risk ( RR = 2.02, 95% CI 1.17–3.49). Twenty‐one percent of the children had more severe reactions at the revisit, 38% less severe and 41% had reactions of comparable severity. However, among 44% of the children with comparable or less severe reaction at revisit, early treatment with adrenaline hampered the classification of change in severity. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance Previously known food allergy and prior prescription of adrenaline are significant risk factors for ED revisits among children with a prior ED visit due to reactions to food. Our results indicate that the severity of the index‐reaction cannot be used to predict the severity of the relapse.