Food Allergy

Food allergy has recently become more common. There is no curative treatment for food allergy and management relies on allergen avoidance and emergency treatment of accidental allergic reactions. Food allergy can have a significant impact on the lives of patients and their families and an accurate diagnosis is, therefore, of utmost importance. A food allergy-focused clinical history, together with evidence of allergen-specific IgE, can be enough to confirm or exclude the diagnosis of food allergy; however, in the equivocal cases, exposure to the allergen in a controlled environment in hospital, called oral food challenge (OFC), is required. New tests are being developed to reduce the number of patients that need OFCs. Allergen-specific immunotherapy has shown to reduce patients' sensitivity to the allergen but the majority of treated patients still remain food allergic. In the absence of a definitive treatment, prevention of food allergy is key.