Eyad Mahmoud Altamimi
Mutah University, Jordan
Title: Cow’s milk protein allergy: Diagnosis and management
Biography
Biography: Eyad Mahmoud Altamimi
Abstract
Cow’s milk protein allergy is a reproducible immune mediated reaction to cow’s milk protein. CMPA is the most common type of food allergy in infants and young children. It affects about 3% of children below the age of 1 year. Most of the affected children manifest their reaction within 2 months of milk introduction. Except for the severe life-threatening reaction: anaphylaxis, none of the CMPA’s symptoms is specific. The clinical presentations are shared with many common pediatric disorders. Clinical presentations include; wheezes, vomiting, diarrhea, failure to gain weight and urticaria. CMPA presentation is dictated by the underlying type of immunological reaction, whether IgE or non-IgE immunological reactions. Risk factors for development of CMPA includes; genetic predisposition and environmental factors (i.e., early exposure to cow’s milk protein). Impaired oral tolerance of such antigen leads to development of the disease. Exclusive breastfeeding is the most effective measure to prevent the development of CMPA. While using
of hypoallergenic formula could be used in high risk infants if breastfeeding is not feasible. No simple and affordable diagnostic test available. Multiple diagnostic and management algorithms are available. The clinical diagnosis based on avoidance and re-challenge is acceptable in most situations. The safest management strategy is avoidance of cow’s milk protein either by exclusive breastfeeding with elimination of dairy products in maternal diet or using extensively hydrolyzed/elemental formula. It is of great importance to identify and manage CMPA early to prevent associated nutritional deficiencies.