Allergist (food) question

[Hopetobe]

When DD was around 1yo, we realized she had an issue with eggs. She vomitted for hours and hours from eating a small amount of even just the yolk(usually it's the proteins in the white that most people react to, supposedly). So, of course, we stopped giving it to her. Our dr said she wouldn't try it again until 2yo. She is 2yo now, and since then I've tried to read some about it and I've gotten a bit scared of trying it with her after hearing anaphylactic stories. I talked to our dr at her 2yo well visit about trying egg again. She said we could try it - have benadryl on hand. And, if she threw up again, probably the safest thing would be to give her the benadryl and then take her to the ER where they can monitor her (since I said I was concerned about if we could easily see breathing issues while she was throwing up and she isn't old enough to tell us things like that). Well, after further discussion, we ended up deciding to do a blood allergy test, which I know idn't conclusive. I got the results today - there was no evidence of egg allergy from it. She can still react. If the test turned out the other way, then we would not try it now. So, dr said we could proceed.

What would you advise in this situation? We've been to the ER twice in the last 7 years, and both times we ended up being charged our deductible, which is $1500, even though I had surgery in one and mostly just bloodwork, electrolytes and a ct scan in the other. So, I'm wondering if going to the ER would mean a $1500 bill regardless, for one thing. And, 2nd, we'd be 10-20 min from an ER if we gave her the egg at home.

So, I'm wondering if it'd be better to make an appointment with an allergist to try a small amount there, in a more controlled environment where they'd have epi pens, etc., can monitor her, and hopefully it would be less than $1500(!). I don't know that much on allergists in regard to food allergies and toddlers though. Is that something that sounds realistic?

Thanks!


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[KarenBoo]

This is what I do when I am testing a scary food for Kitten.

1) Mix/mash the food with water and rub some on the wrist. Watch for skin reaction. If nothing in 24 hours, proceed to

2) Rub some of the food on her cheek. (May need to mix/mash the food with water to get something to rub on the cheek.) This can cause a faster/stronger reaction than the wrist. Monitor. If nothing in 24 hours, proceed to

3) One lick of the food. One tiny grain, not even a tiny bite. Just a tiny speck. If no reaction in 24 hours...

4) One small bite of the food. Wait 24 hours.

5) One normal bite of the food. Wait 24 hours.

6) A few bites of the food. Wait 24 hours.

7) A full serving of the food.

And in the case of eggs, I would do whites and yolks separately, so this entire process twice.

If there is any reaction in any of the steps, we stop. That's the end.

Also, I have never tested her for nuts (like this.) That one scares me to death! If I ever, ever do that one, I would definitely do it at the allergists' office with the doctor present and the epi-kit available. And I would still do it step-by step, and I'd be a the doctor for anything that goes into the mouth. I'd do the skin tests at home.

---------- Post added at 06:53 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:50 PM ----------

Also, my experience was that the blood tests for her under the age of 5 were totally useless. They said she was allergic to things she wasn't. They said she wasn't allergic to things she was. And it's possible that if your DD hadn't had any eggs in that year before her test, there were no antigens to be found in her body to say that she was allergic to eggs. I would put no value on the test.

[sweetpeasmommy]

Has she had anaphylaxis to eggs or anything else? Is she reliably able to tell you if her stomach hurts but she doesn't vomit? Some people react to eggs, but not in baked goods so if you decide to try maybe start that way.

[camperjen]

I would absolutely consider an in-office challenge vs. an at-home challenge. Is it really difficult for your family for her to continue to avoid? I'd be hesitant to try it so soon since her reaction was so violent/severe. When my son was dx dairy allergic at 5yo (he'd been showing symptoms but never severe enough for two and two to be obvious), the doctor said that the majority of people who outgrow a baby/toddler allergy will do so by 5yo. It has not happened in our case, but I would be hesitant to challenge again at only 2yo. Just my opinion - our experience was pretty bad, and my son is so much healthier without dairy in his life, and in so many ways.