Original ArticleAllergen Skin Prick Testing in Early Childhood: Reproducibility and Prediction of Allergic Symptoms into Early Adulthood
Section snippets
Methods
SPT was performed at ages 5, 11, and 20 years with standardized allergen extracts (ALK, Copenhagen, Denmark) of birch, alder, timothy, Kentucky blue, mugwort, cat, dog, Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus, cow's milk, egg, and codfish on healthy skin on the forearm. Histamine hydrochloride (10 mg/mL) and a diluent control were included. A positive SPT was defined as a test reaction with a mean diameter ≥3 mm and equal to or greater than one-half of the diameter of the histamine wheal.14
Atopic
Reproducibility of SPT Results from Age 5 Years to Ages 11 and 20 Years
The reproducibility of SPT was assessed by comparing the SPT results at age 5 years to those at ages 11 and 20 years, and the SPT results at age 11 years to those at age 20 years. Of the 163 children seen at age 5 years, 128 (79%) were seen at age 11 years, and 138 (85%) at age 20 years (Table II; available at www.jpeds.com). All the subjects with at least one positive SPT at age 5 years were SPT positive also at ages 11 and 20 years, ie, none of the subjects lost their SPT positivity during
Discussion
SPT is a well-established method for assessing immunoglobulin E–mediated sensitization and widely used in diagnosing allergic conditions; however, the long-term reproducibility and predictive value are limited. We assessed the predictive value of SPT in children, ie, at age 5 years, on subsequent allergic symptoms up to adult age.
In the present follow-up cohort of healthy children, the reproducibility of SPT positivity detected at age 5 years was 100% at ages 11 and 20 years. Thus, none of the
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Supported by the Foundation for Pediatric Research, the Finnish Medical Foundation, the National Graduate School of Clinical Investigation, and the Helsinki University Hospital Research Funds. The authors declare no conflicts of interest.