However, in Japan, egg allergy is first and cows milk second, followed by wheat and then the other common allergenic foods. A review from South Africa reported egg and peanut as the two most common allergenic foods.Incidence and prevalence are terms commonly used in describing disease epidemiology. Incidence is newly diagnosed cases, which can be expressed as new cases per year per million people. Prevalence is the number of cases alive, expressible as existing cases per million people during a period of time. Egg allergies are usually observed in infants and young children, and often disappear with age (see Prognosis), so prevalence of egg allergy may be expressed as a percentage of children under a set age. One review estimates that in North American and western European populations the prevalence of egg allergy in children under the age of five years is 1.8-2.0%. A second described the range in young children as 0.5-2.5%. Although the majority of children develop tolerance as they age into school age years, for roughly one-third the allergy persists into adulthood. Strong predictors for adult-persistent allergy are anaphylactic symptoms as a child, high egg-specific serum IgE, robust response to the skin prick test and absence of tolerance to egg-containing baked foods. Self-reported allergy prevalence is always higher than food-challenge confirmed allergy. For all age groups, a review of fifty studies conducted in Europe estimated 2.5% for self-reported egg allergy and 0.2% for confirmed.
Laboratory findings could detect increased levels of serum tryptase, increase in total and specific IgE serum levels. Prevention
Avoidance of the trigger of anaphylaxis is recommended. In cases where this may not be possible, desensitization may be an option. Immunotherapy with Hymenoptera venoms is effective at desensitizing 80–90% of adults and 98% of children against allergies to bees, wasps, hornets, yellowjackets, and fire ants. Oral immunotherapy may be effective at desensitizing some people to certain food including milk, eggs, nuts and peanuts; however, adverse effects are common. For example, many people develop an itchy throat, cough, or lip swelling during immunotherapy. Desensitization is also possible for many medications, however it is advised that most people simply avoid the agent in question. In those who react to latex it may be important to avoid cross-reactive foods such as avocados, bananas, and potatoes among others. Management
Anaphylaxis is a medical emergency that may require resuscitation measures such as airway management, supplemental oxygen, large volumes of intravenous fluids, and close monitoring. Passive leg raise may also be helpful in the emergency management.Administration of epinephrine is the treatment of choice with antihistamines and steroids (for example, dexamethasone) often used as adjuncts. A period of in-hospital observation for between 2 and 24 hours is recommended for people once they have returned to normal due to concerns of biphasic anaphylaxis. Epinephrine
Epinephrine (adrenaline) (1 in 1,000) is the primary treatment for anaphylaxis with no absolute contraindication to its use.