An apple a day ... chronic glossitis in a 4-year-old boy.

We report a case of chronic glossitis in a 4-year-old boy due to scurvy. The boy showed up in our department with a patchy depapillated tongue. A detailed dietary history revealed an unbalanced diet without any fruit or vegetable.

A novel immunoassay using recombinant allergens simplifies peanut allergy diagnosis.

Background: Double-blind placebo-controlled food challenge (DBPCFC) is currently considered the gold standard for peanut allergy diagnosis. However, this procedure that requires the hospitalization of patients, mostly children, in specialized centers for oral exposure to allergens may cause severe reactions requiring emergency measures. Thus, a simpler and safer diagnosis procedure is needed.

Prospective study of sensitization and food allergy to flaxseed in 1317 subjects.

Background: Foods containing flaxseed proteins rich inpolyunsaturatedfatty acids are new on the market.

Objectives: In a population of patients attending the allergology department, we evaluated the frequency of sensitization to flaxseed, characterized allergens and looked for modifications related to industrial processing.

Methods: Natural, heated and extruded flaxseeds were tested using prick-in-prick tests (PIP using the fresh seed), SDS PAGE, immunoblots, immunoblot inhibition and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy.

Peanut allergy diagnosis in the context of grass pollen sensitization for 125 patients: roles of peanut and cross-reactive carbohydrate determinants specific IgE.

Background: In vitro testing for food allergy may yield clinically irrelevant results due to cross-reactive carbohydrate determinants (CCD) specific immunoglobulin E (sIgE) induced by pollen exposure. The performances of 2 in vitro methods were evaluated for peanut sIgE measurement in patients allergic to grass pollen with or without subsequent allergy to peanuts. The correlation between clinically irrelevant peanut sIgE and the presence of CCD sIgE was investigated.

The economic costs of severe anaphylaxis in France: an inquiry carried out by the Allergy Vigilance Network.

Background: The prevalence of severe anaphylaxis, between 1 and 3 per 10,000, has increased sharply over recent years, with a rate of lethality of 1%. The economic burden is unknown.

Objective: The aim of this study was to estimate the economic costs of anaphylaxis, including direct costs of treatment, hospitalization, preventive and long-care measures, and the indirect cost: absenteeism.

Predictive value of skin prick tests using recombinant allergens for diagnosis of peanut allergy.

Background: Current diagnosis of peanut allergy relies on natural extracts that lack standardization. Recombinant DNA technology allows production of pure biochemically characterized proteins. Their usefulness for peanut allergy diagnosis is not established.

Risk of allergy to food proteins in topical medicinal agents and cosmetics.

The risk of allergy to food proteins in cosmetics and topical medicinal agents is poorly evaluated. IgE dependent contact urticaria and contact dermatitis are observed. Eleven cases (7 infants and 4 women) are reported.

The risk of systemic reactions to skin prick-tests using food allergens: CICBAA data and literature review.

Prick-tests to foods are usually carried out as the first step in the diagnosis of food allergy. Severe anaphylaxis accounts for 4.9 % of allergies in children and occurs more frequently in adults, raising the possibility of systemic reactions to prick-tests in highly sensitized people.

Food-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis--update and current data.

Exercise-induced anaphylaxis (EIA) is defined as the onset of allergic symptoms during, or immediately after, exercise, the clinical signs being various degrees of urticaria, angioedema, respiratory and gastrointestinal signs and even anaphylactic shock. Food-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis (FDEIA) introduces food in the syndrome and is revealed by a chronological sequence in which food intake, followed by exercise, induces symptoms after a varying period. When the food intake and the exercise are independent of each other, there are no symptoms.