Prevalence of positive atopy patch test in an unselected pediatric population.

Nicola Fuiano,Maurizio Delvecchio,Giuliana Diddi,Cristoforo Incorvaia C

doi:10.1186/s12948-015-0011-2

Nicola Fuiano, Maurizio Delvecchio + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s12948-015-0011-2

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Abstract

BackgroundIn the latest decades, epidemiological studies on allergic disorders in children, including atopic dermatitis, rhinitis and asthma, demonstrated a continuous increase in prevalence. However, such studies are usually performed by questionnaires and, sometimes, by skin prick test or in vitro IgE tests, while the portion of allergy sustained by the cell-mediated mechanism is neglected, because the essential test, i.e. the atopy patch test is not performed.MethodsThis cross-sectional survey studied by a specific questionnaire, skin prick test and atopy patch test, an unselected population, represented by the entire scholastic population attending a Primary school and a Junior Secondary school in the rural town of San Marco in Lamis, 12.000 inhabitants (Puglia, Italy).ResultsAmong the 456 subjects included, 78 (17.1 %) had a positive skin prick test and 57 (12.5 %) had a positive atopy patch test. In particular, 13.4 % of subjects were positive only to skin prick test and 8.8 % were positive only to atopy patch test. The allergen most frequently positive was the house dust mite, with 41 positive results to skin prick test and 55 to atopy patch test, while for pollen positive results concerned almost exclusively the skin prick test.ConclusionsThis survey on an unselected population of children detected a prevalence of positive results to atopy patch test not so distant from the positive results to skin prick test, and in 8.8 % of subjects the atopy patch test was the only positive test. This would suggest to add the atopy patch test in future epidemiological studies on allergy, in order to avoid to overlook the not negligible portion of patients with T-cell-mediated allergy.

Highlights

The atopy patch test (APT) was introduced in the 1980s using the technique of the patch test, used for diagnosis of contact dermatitis, to test the T-cell mediated sensitization to food allergens and inhalant allergens in patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) [1]
A multicentric European survey on patients with AD found that APT to food and inhalant allergens was frequently positive, ranging from a maximum value of 39 % for house dust mites (HDM) to a minimum of 9 % for celery; of note, positive APT with negative skin prick test (SPT) or Fuiano et al Clinical and Molecular Allergy (2015) 13:2 specific IgE in serum for the respective allergen was seen in 17 % of the patients [9]
We evaluated the prevalence of positive APT and SPT in an unselected population of subjects in pediatric age

Summary

Introduction

The atopy patch test (APT) was introduced in the 1980s using the technique of the patch test, used for diagnosis of contact dermatitis, to test the T-cell mediated sensitization to food allergens and inhalant allergens in patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) [1]. In patients with T-cell-mediated allergy the APT can be the only positive test [2,3,4,5] Epidemiological studies on allergic disorders in children, including atopic dermatitis, rhinitis and asthma, demonstrated a continuous increase in prevalence. Such studies are usually performed by questionnaires and, sometimes, by skin prick test or in vitro IgE tests, while the portion of allergy sustained by the cell-mediated mechanism is neglected, because the essential test, i.e. the atopy patch test is not performed

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