Treating Egg Allergy

Can exposing children with egg allergy to escalating doses of the food desensitize them to the allergen? Food allergies affect an estimated 5% of children under the age of 5 and 4% of older kids in the U.S. Egg is a common trigger and can, like other allergens, cause severe or life-threatening reactions.

Avoiding eggs and egg products is currently the only approved treatment. Researchers wanted to find out whether exposing children with egg allergy to small, but escalating doses of the food would desensitize them. In a new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, 55 children, ages 5 to 11, were given either egg-white powder or a placebo. Those who passed the initial phases of the food challenge were then given cooked egg. If they still had no response, they were placed on a diet that allowed egg consumption and were evaluated after 6 and 12 months.

The results? About 28% of the kids made it to the final phase of the study and were able to eat egg successfully. The researchers say this shows that oral immunotherapy can desensitize a high percentage of children with this allergy.

Remember, if your child has a food allergy, any testing or treatment should always be done under a doctor’s supervision.