Frequency of clinical manifestations of food allergies in preschool children
Background: In the last few decades, along with the lifestyle changes and the development of diagnostic procedures, food allergies have become a serious public health problem. In addition to health problems, they also lead to deterioration of the quality of life of both patients and their families. The aim of the study was to determine the frequency of clinical manifestations in preschoolers suffering from food allergies Methods and Objectives: Cross-sectional study was performed in kindergarten "Dr Simo Milošević" Total number of children aged 2-6 years included in the study was 4123. Data on the type of food allergy and clinical manifestations were used. Symptoms were divided according to respiratory symptoms, contact allergies, allergies on the skin, lips, and gastrointestinal, diarrhea Study instrument was questionnaire for parents. Descriptive and analytical statistics methods were used in statistical data processing. Statistical data processing was done in the SPSS Windows version 25 software package. Results: Out of the total number of children who participated in the research, 41 had a food allergy. Out of the total number of children with allergies, most of the symptoms were related to changes in the skin, 53.7%, followed by changes in the lips, 22%, and diarrhea, 17.1%. Only 7.3% of children with food allergies had an anaphylactic manifestation of allergy. Conclusions: The obtained data show a high frequency of clinical manifestations of food allergies, indicating the importance of early detection of food allergies.