Knowledge, attitude, and practices of medical clinicians regarding food allergy and anaphylaxis in Hyderabad, India.

BACKGROUND: Food allergy (FA) is a chronic condition of emerging global concern. Surveys have been conducted in numerous countries to assess physician knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) pertaining to FA and anaphylaxis, and substantial deficits in their KAP were identified. OBJECTIVE: To assess the KAP of medical clinicians in Hyderabad, India, with respect to FA and anaphylaxis. METHODS: A regionally representative sample of 570 physicians including 113 general practitioners, 123 pediatricians, 110 pulmonologists, 113 dermatologists, and 111 gastroenterologists were recruited from all major institutions in Hyderabad, India. A validated questionnaire was used to assess their KAP. RESULTS: Overall, 90% of questions were correctly answered and differences emerged with respect to specific items, namely the following: (1) the lateral thigh being the preferred location for epinephrine administration (P = .001); (2) a positive skin prick test or radioallergosorbent test is sufficient for FA diagnosis (P = .04); and (3) the appropriate epinephrine dose for a 27-kg child (P = .006). Approximately 95% of the participants in each group were confident in their ability to care for patients with FA, yet 91% desired additional periodic FA training sessions. CONCLUSION: Survey findings suggest that although FA knowledge among South Indian clinicians seems high across all major specialties who care for patients with FA, there are differences in the level of knowledge among them, which in turn reflects the differences in attitude and approach toward their patients. These FA care providers still desire to further participate in continuing medical education efforts in the field of food allergy. Efforts to provide periodic training and education for all FA clinical care providers remain vital in South India.

Prevalence and Severity of Sesame Allergy in the United States.

Importance: Sesame allergy is of growing concern in the United States. The US Food and Drug Administration recently issued a request for epidemiological data on the prevalence and severity of sesame allergies in the United States to inform possible regulatory action requiring sesame to be labeled as an allergen on packaged foods. Objective: To provide current estimates of the prevalence, severity, distribution, and clinical characteristics of sesame allergy in the United States. Design, Setting, and Participants: This cross-sectional study assessed findings of web- and telephone-based food allergy questionnaires. Study participants were first recruited from NORC (National Opinion Research Center) at the University of Chicago's probability-based AmeriSpeak panel, and additional participants were recruited through Survey Sampling International. Surveys were administered to a nationally representative sample of 51 819 US households from October 1, 2015, through September 31, 2016. Responses for 40 453 adults and 38 408 children were included in the analysis. Data were analyzed from January 1, 2017, through May 1, 2019. Exposures: Demographic and allergic characteristics of participants. Main Outcomes and Measures: Self-reported sesame allergy was the main outcome and was considered convincing if reported symptoms to sesame-allergic reactions were consistent with an IgE-mediated reaction. Diagnostic history of specific allergens and use of food allergy-related health care services were also primary outcomes. Results: Using survey responses from 78 851 individuals, an estimated 0.49% (95% CI, 0.40%-0.58%) of the US population reported a current sesame allergy, whereas 0.23% (95% CI, 0.19%-0.28%) met symptom-report criteria for convincing IgE-mediated allergy. An additional 0.11% (95% CI, 0.08%-0.16%) had a sesame allergy reported as physician diagnosed but did not report reactions fulfilling survey-specified convincing reaction symptoms. Among individuals with convincing IgE-mediated sesame allergy, an estimated 23.6% (95% CI, 16.9%-32.0%) to 37.2% (95% CI, 29.2%-45.9%) had previously experienced a severe sesame-allergic reaction, depending on the definition used, and 81.6% (95% CI, 71.0%-88.9%) of patients with convincing sesame allergy had at least 1 additional convincing food allergy. Roughly one-third of patients with convincing sesame allergy (33.7%; 95% CI, 26.3%-42.0%) reported previous epinephrine use for sesame allergy treatment. Conclusions and Relevance: These data indicate a substantial burden of sesame allergy and provide valuable context to physicians and policy makers in their efforts to evaluate and reduce the public health burden of sesame allergy. Moreover, the relatively low rates of physician diagnosis observed among individuals with convincing IgE-mediated sesame allergy seem to indicate the need for clear diagnosis and appropriate management.

Economic burden of food allergy: A systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the economic burden of food allergy (FA) worldwide. DATA SOURCES: PubMed MEDLINE, Embase, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials on the Wiley platform were searched to identify literature that assessed direct, out-of-pocket, and opportunity costs of FA. All databases were searched back to their inception, and no language or date limits were applied. STUDY SELECTIONS: We included primary studies that examined direct medical, out-of-pocket, or opportunity costs and/or lost labor productivity in food allergic adults and/or children and their families. RESULTS: Eleven papers met our inclusion criteria, of which ed7 addressed direct medical, 7 addressed out-of-pocket, and 5 addressed opportunity costs. Estimates were based on data that reflected costs for a patient with FA (individual level) or costs for a household with a food allergic patient (household level). The mean individual-level direct medical costs ($2081) were much higher than the mean household-level costs ($806). The mean individual-level out-of-pocket ($1874) and opportunity ($1038) and opportunity cost were lower than the mean household-level out-of-pocket ($3339) and opportunity ($4881) costs. Household-level estimates of lost opportunity costs imposed the largest economic burden attributable to FA. CONCLUSION: Most of the economic burden studies reviewed measured components of economic burden that are unique to individuals with FA but did so in noncomparable ways. Addressing cost burdens and measuring them using standardized instruments and methods will be critical to better understand the economic burden of FA globally.