[High-dose intravenous immunoglobulin treatment].

High-dose intravenous immunoglobulin (VIG) treatment for the acute stage of Kawasaki disease (KD) has shown to be effective and safe. But it is known that 15% to 20% of patients are resistant to initial MG. Initial VIG treatment (2 g/kg) and aspirin (30-50 mg/kg/day) within 9th day of illness has a potentially risk of coronary arterial lesions. It should be mentioned that prediction of resistant cases in IVIG with KD can be detected by information from patients before and early after start of treatment. Some scoring systems are available for the prediction.

[The positivity of specific IgE to salmon roe and cod roe in outpatients].

PURPOSE: To clarify the positivity of specific IgE to salmon and cod roe in outpatients. METHODS: Specific IgE were assayed using CAP RAST system in 91 pediatric outpatients. They were 47 males and 44 females, including 22 allergic, 29 infectious, 10 neurological, 8 gastrointestinal, 7 urological, 6 hematologic, 3 metabolic disease and 6 other disorders. For control, 30 sera from healthy normal adult volunteers were assayed. Additionally, sera from 653 allergic patients were also collected in our laboratory. Specific IgEs against salmon and cod meat were also assayed simultaneously. RESULTS: In 91 pediatric patients, two children were salmon roe positive and one child was cod roe positive. Three children scored class 1, borderline positive in salmon roe, and one child scored class 1 in cod roe. Other children were negative in all allergens. No positive sera were found in normal adult volunteers. Among 653 specimens in our laboratory, the positivity of specific IgE to salmon and cod roe were 25%, and 9%, respectively. Infants younger than two years old had higher ratio than older children. There was a significant correlation (r = 0.676) between the titers of IgE to salmon and cod roe. On the other hand, the titers of IgE to their meats correlated less than those to their roes. Our results support previous reports that fish roe from different species have common antigen apart from those of fish meat. CONCLUSION: Positive ratio of salmon and cod roe specific IgE were 2.2 and 1.1% in pediatric outpatients.