A cross-sectional, population-based study on the prevalence of food allergies among children in two different socio-economic regions of Vietnam

Le, Thu T.K., Nguyen, Duy H., Vu, An T.L., Ruethers, Thimo, Taki, Aya C., and Lopata, Andreas L. (2019) A cross-sectional, population-based study on the prevalence of food allergies among children in two different socio-economic regions of Vietnam. Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, 30 (3). pp. 348-355.

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Abstract

Background: There is a paucity of data on the prevalence of food allergy (FA) in Vietnam. A cross-sectional, population-based study was conducted to evaluate the current prevalence of FA among 2- to 6-year-old children in two different regions in Vietnam.

Method: A structured, anonymous questionnaire, modified from published FA epidemiologic studies and based on EAACI guidelines, was distributed to parents/guardians of participating children in Hue City (urban area) and Tien Giang Province (rural area). Data collected from the survey were statistically analyzed to generate the prevalence of self-reported and doctor-diagnosed FA and overarching pattern of food allergens.

Results: A total of 8620 responses were collected (response rate 81.5%). Children in Tien Giang reported more than twice the food-induced adverse reactions seen in children in Hue (47.8% vs. 20.5%). In contrast, children in Hue showed higher self-reported FA (9.8%) and doctor-diagnosed FA rates (8.4%) than children in Tien Giang (7.9% and 5.0%, respectively). Crustacean was the predominant allergy-inducing food in both areas (330 of 580 cases, 56.9%), followed by fish, mollusk, beef, milk, and egg. However, substantial variations of FA patterns were seen between the study sites. Geographic location and co-morbidities of other allergic diseases were key risk factors for FA (P < 0.001).

Conclusions: The prevalence of FA in Vietnamese children seems to be higher than previously reported from other Asian countries. Crustacean is the predominant allergy-inducing food among participating preschool children in Vietnam. The variation of reported food allergen sources across different socio-economic locations could imply different eating habits or the participation of indoor and outdoor allergen exposure.

Item ID: 61833
Item Type: Article (Research - C1)
ISSN: 1399-3038
Keywords: children, crustacean allergy, fish allergy, food allergy, prevalence, Vietnam
Copyright Information: © 2019 EAACI and John Wiley and Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley and Sons Ltd.
Funders: National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), Australian Research Council (ARC)
Projects and Grants: NHMRC Grant Number: 1086656
Date Deposited: 20 May 2020 04:58
FoR Codes: 32 BIOMEDICAL AND CLINICAL SCIENCES > 3204 Immunology > 320401 Allergy @ 100%
SEO Codes: 92 HEALTH > 9201 Clinical Health (Organs, Diseases and Abnormal Conditions) > 920108 Immune System and Allergy @ 100%
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