A case of allergy to cow's milk hydrolysate

We here report a girl, now 3 years old, who has suffered from severe food a llergy since her first year of life. She was strongly allergic to cow's mil k, and had high levels of IgE antibody (AB) to casein (210 kU/l), beta-lact oglobulin (43 kU/l), and alpha-lactalbumin (23 kU/l) at 12 months of age. I n addition, at the same age, she showed positive (2-4+) skin prick reaction s to both unboiled and boiled formulas (Profylac, Nutramigen, and Neocate), besides being positive in RAST to Nutramigen (0.6kU/l). During the first 3 years, IgE Ab levels against casein and Nutramigen increased to 310 and 1. 6 kU/l, respectively. Furthermore, at 3 years of age, she had positive RAST to 14 of 15 tested food allergens, being negative only to codfish. Assessm ent of eosinophil-related markers revealed high total eosinophil count, inc reased eosinophil activity, and a low ratio of interferon (IFN)-gamma:IL-5, indicating enhanced IL-5 production. The food allergy was correlated to po or weight gain and increasing problems with atopic allergy in the airways.