Differences in Characteristics Between Patients Who Met or Partly Met the Diagnostic Criteria for Food Protein-Induced Enterocolitis Syndrome (FPIES).

BACKGROUND: Some patients with food protein-induced enterocolitis (FPIES)-like allergy do not completely fulfill the diagnostic criteria of the international consensus guideline for FPIES. However, it is unclear whether such FPIES-like patients represent a completely different population from FPIES. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to clarify differences in characteristics between patients with FPIES who fully met diagnostic criteria and those who partly met them. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study using data at the time of registration in multicenter, prospective studies of patients with FPIES in Japan. Children who had delayed emesis within 1 to 4 hours and/or diarrhea within 5 to 10 hours after ingestion of food were recruited between March 2020 and February 2022. We examined their compatibility with the diagnostic criteria of the international consensus guideline and their detailed clinical characteristics, including trigger foods, the serving size that elicited symptoms, and antigen-specific IgE antibody titers. RESULTS: Of the 225 patients with FPIES, 140 fully met the diagnostic criteria whereas 79 patients did not fully meet them but demonstrated reproducible symptoms. The frequencies of pallor, lethargy, and diarrhea were significantly higher in those who met the criteria fully, whereas the age at onset, trigger foods, comorbidity, and perinatal information were comparable. Analysis of patients with FPIES to hen's egg revealed significantly higher levels of egg white- and egg yolk-specific IgE in patients who partly met criteria, whereas the serving size eliciting symptoms was comparable. CONCLUSIONS: Patients who partly met the diagnostic criteria may have a milder phenotype of FPIES, but this needs to be validated in further studies using biomarkers reflecting the pathophysiology.

[USE OF MULTIPLE DOSES OF ADRENALINE FOR FOOD-INDUCED ANAPHYLAXIS].

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to determine the rate, characteristics, and risk factors in patients who required multiple doses of adrenaline for treatment of anaphylaxis. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the positive oral food challenges (OFCs) with anaphylaxis in pediatric patients at Saitama City Hospital between January 2013 and November 2014, analyzing age, sex, comorbid allergic disease, specific IgE level, food, symptoms, and treatment. RESULT: There were 42 positive challenges with anaphylaxis, and the median age of the patients was 4 years old. Eighteen patients were treated with adrenaline, 5 of whom (11.9% of anaphylaxis cases) were administered multiple doses of adrenaline. Among the 5 patients, 3 were treated with infusion. We compared patients who were not administered adrenaline or were administered a single dose of adrenaline with those who were administered multiple doses of adrenaline. No significant differences were found among the groups in relation to age, sex, comorbid allergic disease, and the aim of OFCs. The number of patients who received multiple doses of adrenaline treatment was more in the milk OFCs than the other foods OFCs. Cardiovascular and neurological symptoms were more severe in patients who received multiple doses of adrenaline. CONCLUSION: Information that multiple doses of adrenaline may be required at the time of anaphylaxis should be widely disseminated.

Listeria monocytogenes Meningitis Complicating Rotavirus Gastroenteritis in an Immunocompetent Child.

Listeria monocytogenes only occasionally causes bacterial meningitis in immunocompetent children. We report a case of L. monocytogenes meningitis associated with rotavirus gastroenteritis. The patient was a previously healthy 20-month-old girl who was admitted because of sustained fever and lethargy after suffering from gastroenteritis for 6 days. The patient's peripheral white blood cell count was 18,600/µL and the C-reactive protein level was 2.44 mg/dL. A stool sample tested positive for rotavirus antigen. A cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) sample showed pleocytosis. Cultures of the CSF and stool samples revealed the presence of L. monocytogenes. The patient was successfully treated with ampicillin and gentamicin. We speculate that translocation of enteric flora across the intestinal epithelium that had been damaged by rotavirus gastroenteritis might have caused bacteremia that disseminated into the CSF. Both listeriosis and secondary systemic infection after rotavirus gastroenteritis are rare but not unknown. Initiation of appropriate treatment as soon as possible is important for all types of bacterial meningitis. This rare but serious complication should be taken into consideration even if the patient does not have any medical history of immune-related problems.