Prevalence of allergic sensitivity to imported fire ants in children from an endemic region

Abstract

Rationale Children living in endemic regions for imported fire ants (IFA) are subject to frequent IFA stings. Little is known about the epidemiology of sensitization to IFA in children. Methods We examined the prevalence of allergic sensitization to IFA, yellow jacket venom (YJV) and peanut in 145 unselected children, 7-18 years of age, from an IFA infested region. Specific IgE to IFA, YJV, and peanut were determined using the Pharmacia UniCAP assay. Results were compared to identical studies in 200 local adult blood donors. Results The prevalence of IFA-specific IgE (70/145, 48%) in the childhood population was significantly higher than to YJV (11/145, 7.6%, p<0.0001) or to peanut (16/145, 11%, p<0.0001). IFA-specific IgE values ranged from 0.35 to 68.8 k AU/L with a geometric mean of 3.07 k AU/L. The prevalence of IFA-specific IgE in children from Augusta was higher than in local adult blood donors (48% vs 17%, p<0.0001). No difference was demonstrated for YJV-specific IgE or peanut-specific IgE in children compared with adults (7.5% vs 10%, p=0.44 and 11% vs 6.5%, p=0.26). Only 10% (7/70) of IFA positive children were also sensitive to YJV. Conclusions The high prevalence of IFA-specific IgE in this study suggests that physicians must cautiously interpret IFA-IgE results when evaluating possible allergic reactions in children.