Community Private Practice Clinical Experience with Peanut Oral Immunotherapy.

Background: Peanut oral immunotherapy is an effective treatment for desensitizing peanut-allergic patients, but the frequency of adverse reactions has limited its widespread use.

Objective: To review the frequency of adverse reactions that patients on peanut oral immunotherapy experience during build-up and maintenance phases and explore factors that may contribute to adverse events.

Methods: A retrospective chart review of children and adults with peanut allergy undergoing peanut oral immunotherapy at the New England Food Allergy Treatment Center in West Hartford, Conn was performed.

Penicillin Allergy Evaluation: A Prospective, Multicenter, Open-Label Evaluation of a Comprehensive Penicillin Skin Test Kit.

Background: Ten percent of the population claims an allergy to penicillin, but 90% of these individuals are not allergic. Patients labeled as penicillin-allergic have higher medical costs, longer hospital stays, are more likely to be treated with broad-spectrum antibiotics, and develop drug-resistant bacterial infections. Most penicillin skin test reagents are not approved by the Food and drug Administration or readily available to evaluate patients labeled penicillin-allergic.

Penicillin minor determinants: History and relevance for current diagnosis.

Objective: To review the history of the penicillin minor determinants and evaluate their relevance for current diagnosis.

Data Sources: Skin testing to detect immunoglobulin E (IgE) sensitivity to penicillins in patients with a history of penicillin allergy has been the subject of more than 55 years of published research involving tens of thousands of patients.

Study Selections: Selection of data was based on its relevance to the objective of this article.

Oral immunotherapy for peanut allergy: multipractice experience with epinephrine-treated reactions.

Background: Peanut allergy creates the risk of life-threatening anaphylaxis that can disrupt psychosocial development and family life. The avoidance management strategy often fails to prevent anaphylaxis and may contribute to social dysfunction. Peanut oral immunotherapy may address these problems, but there are safety concerns regarding implementation in clinical practice.

Effect of oral immunotherapy to peanut on food-specific quality of life.

Background: Peanut allergy is an increasingly common problem for which the only available treatment is avoidance. Oral immunotherapy has shown promise for increasing tolerance of peanut in allergic children. Food allergy has an effect on the quality of life of children and adolescents.

Twice-daily budesonide inhalation suspension in infants and children < 4 and > or = 4 years of age with persistent asthma.

A retrospective analysis, based on a randomized, placebo-controlled, 12-week study in children 6 months to 8 years of age with persistent asthma, was performed to compare the efficacy and safety of budesonide inhalation suspension 0.25 mg and 0.5 mg twice daily vs.