Food allergy in under 19s: assessment and diagnosis

Recommendation ID: CG116/4
Question: Values of skin prick testing and specific IgE antibody testing and their predictive value:- Can skin prick testing and specific IgE antibody testing cut-off points be established to diagnose IgE-mediated food allergy in children and young people, and to predict the severity of reaction?
Any explanatory notes (if applicable): Why this is important:- It is well described that about 1 in 5 people reporting an adverse reaction to
food have a true food allergy. Of these, the majority will have non-IgEmediated allergies. Food challenges are cumbersome and time-consuming and there are some safety risks involved. The availability of skin prick testing and specific IgE testing cut-off points to diagnose food allergy and to predict the severity of reaction would therefore lead to huge cost savings in the NHS
and would reduce patient risk. There are published data available from the US, Australia and Europe, but allergists argue that these cut-off points are population-specific and should not be used in the UK.

Source guidance details

Is this a recommendation for the use of a technology only in the context of research?	No
Is it a recommendation that suggests collection of data or the establishment of a register?	No