A review of food allergy panels and their consequences

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

2 Scopus citations

Abstract

Serum immunoglobulin E (IgE) assays to food specific IgE (s-IgE) are useful tools for the confirmation of clinical suspicion of food allergy. However, the specificity of these assays is poor given that sensitization is much more common than clinical food allergy. Therefore, the use of broad panels to assess sensitization to multiple foods often leads to overdiagnosis and unnecessary food avoidance. Unintended consequences that may occur as a result include physical harm, psychological harm, financial cost, opportunity cost, and even worsening of existing health care disparities. Although current guidelines recommend against the use of s-IgE food panel testing, these tests are widely available and frequently used. To limit the negative impacts of s-IgE food panel testing, further work is needed to effectively spread the message that these food panels may cause unintended harm to patients and families.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)421-426
Number of pages6
JournalAnnals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology
Volume131
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 2023

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Immunology and Allergy
  • Immunology
  • Pulmonary and Respiratory Medicine

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