Food allergy in children (6 to 11 years old) in Tirana

ANA KALEMAJ^1*, MIRELA LIKA (ÇEKANI)¹, ENVER ROSHI²

¹Department of Biology, Faculty of Natural Scinces, Tirana University, «Bulevardi Zogu i Parë”, No.7, Tirana, Albania.

²Department of Public Health, Faculty of Public Health, University of Medicine, Tirana. “Kongresi i Manastirit”, no.133, Tirana, Albania.

* Corresponding author e-mail: anakalemaj1988@yahoo.com

Download PDF Fulltext

Abstract

One hundred and twenty Albanian children from 6 to 11 years of age, descending from two different school, were considered as representative sample of Tirana’s children population. After we filled the questionnaires we estimated the level of the eosinophyle and immunoglobulin E (IgE) in the blood. In this article, we have summarized the state of knowledge about the healthy immune response to antigens in the diet and the basis of immune deviation that results in IgE sensitization and allergic reactivity to foods. Food allergies are increasing in prevalence at a higher rate than can be explained by genetic factors, suggesting a role for as yet unidentified environmental factors.The intestinal epithelium forms the interface between the external environment and the mucosal immune system, and emerging data suggest that the interaction between intestinal epithelial cells and mucosal dendritic cells is of a particular importance in determining the outcome of immune responses to dietary antigens. For more than 50 years, many children with food protein allergies and other forms of dietary protein intolerance have been treated successfully with protein hydrolysates with highly reduced allergenicity and, more recently, also with products based on amino acid mixtures. We have used the color methods and blood striche to diagnose the eosiniphilia presence. To determine the IgE there have been used the EIA kits. There is no correlation between the size of a skin prick test or the level of specific IgE and the clinical sensitivity in individual patients.

Key words: immune response, food allergy, immunglobulin, antigen.