Egg allergy
Egg allergy is an immune hypersensitivity to proteins found in chicken eggs, and possibly goose, duck, or turkey eggs. Symptoms can be either rapid or gradual in onset. The latter can take hours to days to appear. The former may include anaphylaxis, a potentially life-threatening condition which requires treatment with epinephrine. Other presentations may include atopic dermatitis or inflammation of the esophagus.
| Egg allergy | |
|---|---|
| A boiled chicken egg | |
| Specialty | Emergency medicine Allergy & immunology |
| Symptoms | itchiness, rash, swelling of lips, tongue or the whole face, eczema, wheezing and shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, anaphylaxis |
| Causes | Type I hypersensitivity |
| Risk factors | Consumption of chicken eggs, and also of baked goods that have eggs in the recipe. |
| Diagnostic method | Medical history and standard allergy tests |
| Prevention | Introduction to allergenic foods during infancy |
| Treatment | Epinephrine Antihistamines (mild) |
| Prognosis | Less than 30% of childhood egg allergies will persist into adulthood . |
| Frequency | In developed countries the prevalence of egg allergy in children under the age of five years is 1.8-2.0%. |
In the United States, 90% of allergic responses to foods are caused by cow's milk, eggs, wheat, shellfish, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, and soybeans. The declaration of the presence of trace amounts of allergens in foods is not mandatory in any country, with the exception of Brazil.
Prevention is by avoiding eating eggs and foods that may contain eggs, such as cake or cookies. It is unclear if the early introduction of the eggs to the diet of babies aged 4–6 months decreases the risk of egg allergies.
Egg allergy appears mainly in children but can persist into adulthood. In the United States, it is the second most common food allergy in children after cow's milk. Most children outgrow egg allergy by the age of five, but some people remain allergic for a lifetime. In North America and Western Europe, egg allergy occurs in 0.5% to 2.5% of children under the age of five years. The majority grow out of it by school age, but for roughly one-third, the allergy persists into adulthood. Strong predictors for adult-persistence are anaphylaxis, high egg-specific serum immunoglobulin E (IgE), robust response to the skin prick test and absence of tolerance to egg-containing baked foods.