Peanut allergy prevalence remained constant from early childhood, researchers in the United Kingdom have found, but sensitization treatments peak during adolescence.
After studying 1,456 children in the Isle of Wight birth cohort for incidence, persistence and remission of peanut sensitization and allergies, starting from age 1, researchers determined allergic symptoms for the children. Skin prick tests at ages 1, 2, 4, 10 and 18 years were administered for 14 aeroallergens and food allergens, including peanut. Sensitization was classified. Peanut-induced allergic sensitization rose gradually during the first ten years, the study found, and then increased more sharply from 10 to 18 years of age.
“The most common pattern of peanut sensitization was its development for the first time at 18 years in 42 … of 66 children in association with grass pollen sensitivity and allergic rhinitis,” the researchers wrote. They qualify this, however, by noting that “the numbers with PA in our study were small, and therefore these findings should be interpreted with caution.”
The study, published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology can be seen in abstract form here.