Anaphylaxis in children and adolescents. A cohort of 44 children aged 2 months to 15.5 years.

The increase in frequency of anaphylaxis, an acute allergic reaction which may be fatal, might be explained by the rise in food allergy. We report a c ohort of 44 children, aged 2 months to 15.5 years, who were admitted in a p ediatric emergency unit for serious allergic events. Thirty-two percent, 86 % and 66% presented hypotension, severe edema and respiratory distress, res pectively. Three patients were admitted to the ICU. One-fourth of all child ren had an angioneurotic edema history 1/3 were asthmatics and 41% had know n allergy. Etiologies were: food allergy (42.5%), drugs (14.8%), respirator y allergy (9%), miscellaneous (14.8%), idiopathic (6.4%) and unknown becaus e of incomplete investigations (12.4%). Three-fourths of food allergies wer e comprised of the expected protein categories (milk, nuts, eggs and fish). Nine children had an allergic relapse during the following months. We othe rwise assessed that adrenaline was underused by the medical staff. (C) 1999 Elsevier, Paris.