Diagnostic values for egg white specific IgE levels with the skin prick test in Turkish children with egg white allergy.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The diagnostic values for the skin prick test (SPT) diameters and egg white-specific IgE (EW-sIgE) levels that will allow us to predict the result of the oral food challenge test (OFC) in the diagnosis of egg white allergy vary by the community where the study is carried out. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to determine the diagnostic values of SPT and EW-sIgE levels in the diagnosis of egg white allergy. METHODS: 59 patients followed with the diagnosis of egg allergy September 2013 to September 2015 were included in our retrospective cross-sectional study. The patients were investigated in terms of egg and anaphylaxis history or the requirement of the OFC positivity. The demographic, clinical and laboratory findings of the cases were recorded, and they were compared with the patients with the suspected egg allergy but negative OFC (n=47). RESULTS: In the study, for all age groups, the value of 5mm in SPT was found to be significant at 96.4% positive predictive value (PPV) and 97.8% specificity and the value of 5.27kU/L for EW-sIgE was found to be significant at 76% PPV and 86.6% specificity for egg white. The diagnostic power of the SPT for egg white (AUC 72.2%) was determined to be significantly higher compared to the diagnostic power of the EW-sIgE (AUC 52.3%) (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Along with the determination of the diagnostic values of communities, the rapid and accurate diagnosis of the children with a food allergy will be ensured, and the patient follow-up will be made easier.