Reported adverse food reactions overestimate true food Allergy in Asthmatics
Priyanka Jaina, Surya Kanta, Rachna Mishrab, Neelam Singhb, and A.B Singhc
aDepartment of Pulmonary Medicine, Chhatrapati Shahuji Medical University, Lucknow, U.P. (India) e mail-priyankajain0812@rediffmail.com. kant.surya21@gmail.com. bDepartment of Nutrition, Isabella Thoburn College, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh (India) ruchita0812@rediffmail.com. cInstitute of Genomics and Integrative Biology, New Delhi (India) singh49@gmail.com
ABSTRACT
To determine the extent to which perceived adverse food reactions in asthmatics were associated with IgE mediated food allergy, as defined by skin prick testing (SPT). An epidemiological study. Patients suffering from asthma underwent SPT to thirteen common food allergens (banana, curd, rice, lemon, milk, orange, egg, urd, pea groundnut, fish. radish, potato) and were asked whether they had ever suffered any food ‘illness/trouble’, and if so to list such food(s). A positive SPT was deûned as wheal diameter of 3 mm. Cohen’s kappa (k) was used to assess the agreement between SPT and self-reported reactions to food(s) which contained the allergen of interest. The patients were enrolled as they came on accrual basis from Aug 2009 to Sep 2010 and recruited from the outpatient department of the Department of Pulmonary Medicine, CSM Medical University and King George’s Medical College Hospital, Lucknow.