Milk allergy manifests as constipation in some children
Tuesday, 05 January 2010 08:42
As clinical presentation, cow's milk allergy is said to differ with age. Scientists in Cairo, Egypt have studied to what extent cow's milk allergy is a cause of constipation in infants and young children. They also aimed to determine when these patients could tolerate cow’s milk protein and found the best results were achieved after strict avoidance of cow's milk for a 12 month period.
The study was conducted on 60 young children who suffered from chronic functional constipation. An age- and sex-matched control group of 30 apparently healthy infants and children was also included in the study. Serum specific IgE to cow’s milk proteins was measured in all patients and found to be significantly higher in patients with constipation compared with controls. Cow’s milk allergy was indicated in 78% of the patients with constipation.
All cow’s milk and dairy products were withdrawn from the diet for a one month period, then a cow’s milk challenge was conducted over two weeks. Eighteen patients with cow’s milk allergy continued the milk-avoidance diet for a further 6 months, and nine of these continued for a total of 12 months. Only 22% of this group showed tolerance to cow’s milk after 6 months on the milk-avoidance diet, compared with 89% after 12 months.
Reference: El-Hodhod et al. 2009. Pediatric Allergy and Immunology Doi:10.1111/j.1399-3038.2009.00898.x
