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Food allergy symptoms

Let’s talk food allergy

Food allergy syptoms – Adverse food reactions

The most common symptoms are dermatological or gastrointestinal (or a combination of both). The dermatological signs are varied, and are often indistinguishable from those associated with atopic dermatitis. When pruritus is not responsive to corticosteroids, a food allergy should be considered. However, if pruritus responds to corticosteroids, that does mean that no food allergy is present.

Generalised or localised non-seasonal pruritus (of the face, ears, paws, armpits, inguinal and perineal regions) is the most frequently described symptom. The patient experiences severe itching, resulting in excessive and unnatural scratching, biting and licking.

It is also possible for the effects of a food allergy to be below the “itch threshold”, with only flare-ups of pruritus occurring when there are increased levels of environmental allergens during the high-pollen season. Otitis externa and recurrent pyoderma, with or without pruritus, has also been associated with food allergies.

Gastrointestinal symptoms may include vomiting, diarrhoea, weight loss, abdominal discomfort, flatulence and frequent defecation (more than three times a day).

Diagnosis

The most common food allergens that affect dogs seem to be beef, chicken, egg, milk, wheat, soy and corn, which are also common ingredients in many commercial foods.

In order to diagnose food allergy, a food elimination trial should be performed.

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PAX® Food Test can give guidance

PAX® Food Test

While there is no doubt that the current testing of food allergens has not been sufficiently predictive of food allergy to justify their use in clinical practice, as we reported in a recent critically-appraised topic, the use of molecular allergology warrants to reevaluate this position.

There is evidence that food allergies—an etiologic diagnosis—represent, in fact, a group of clinically and pathogenically-different entities, from the IgE-mediated urticaria, angioedema and anaphylaxis to the cell-mediated gastro-intestinal diseases; food-induced atopic dermatitis likely involving both mechanisms.
IgE sensitization tests, are only designed to detect the sensitizations of IgE-mediated food allergies, which are those with signs recurring within the first hours after an oral food challenge. As such, the PAX offers an attractive solution to detect IgE sensitizations to molecular food allergens, which should prove of help to select allergens for oral food challenge and/or to select food ingredients unlikely to cause immediate reactions.

Why and when PAX Food can help:
– For pets with IgE mediated food allergies (those with immediate reactions after an oral food challenge)
– To help identify patterns of allergen cross-reactivity
– To help prioritize the order of oral food challenges
– To help identify foods unlikely to cause immediate reactions

PAX® Food