Skin patches may help peanut tolerance in toddlers with allergies | Smart News

For young children with peanut allergies, new skin patches may increase tolerance to legumes, according to results from late-stage clinical trials.

Since the peanut patch is , it’s not yet clear when it will be available to consumers. But for parents with young children with allergies who may accidentally ingest peanuts at school or daycare, it offers a glimpse into a less stressful future.

“Surprisingly, not only did the amount of peanuts increase, [tolerance] But the nature of the reaction also changed. The number of serious reactions has decreased. ” Matthew GreenhortCo-author of the new study, he is an allergist at Children’s Hospital of Colorado. NBC NewsAria Bendix.

The purpose of this patch is not to eliminate peanut allergies in children. Rather, it is hoped that serious reactions caused by accidental exposure to peanuts will be reduced or not caused at all, said the chief medical officer of his DBV Technologies, the company that developed the patch. Faris Mohideen, an investigator, told his NBC News.

Still, he said the patch “could save a child’s life.” waley thongAn allergist at the AllerVie Health Allergy Clinic, who was not involved in the study, said: USA TodayAdriana Rodriguez.

Peanuts are one of the most common food allergens for children in the United States, according to the WHO. American Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology.largely 2.5 percent One in every child in the United States is allergic to peanuts and may be at risk of allergic reactions such as hives, nausea, vomiting and shortness of breath. Exposure can also cause life-threatening reactions. Anaphylaxis.

the current, treatment only Peanut Allergies is a powder that children can eat to reduce the severity of reactions, said Lauran Neergaard of . Associated Press (AP). But even that is only available to children between the ages of 4 and 17, and studies show that there is no approved treatment for peanut allergy in children under the age of 4.

A new paper last week New England Journal of Medicineincluded 362 infants aged 1 to 3 years who were allergic to peanuts. About 85% of participants completed the trial.

The children wore the skin patch between their shoulder blades for approximately 22 hours each day for one year. Provides trace amounts of peanut protein equivalent to approximately 1/1,000th of peanuts. washington postof Brian Piechu. His two-thirds of participants received the peanut patch and the remaining participants received the placebo patch.

After one year, 67 percent of treated children were able to tolerate high doses of peanuts, compared with only 33.5 percent of placebo-treated children. (Mr. Greenhort told The Associated Press that some children in the placebo group probably overcame their allergies.) According to NBC News, two-thirds of the patients who had a successful peanut patch had up to four equivalent to peanuts could be safely ingested.

However, this study had two main limitations. First, children with severe allergies were not included due to safety concerns, and second, the group lacked racial diversity. Each trial group included only one child identified as black, they wrote. washington post.

The most common side effect was skin irritation around the patch. However, some participants experienced anaphylactic reactions, with 26 receiving treatment and 3 not receiving treatment. USA Today. Researchers believe that only four of the anaphylactic reactions in children wearing peanut patches were related to treatment.

While it is too early to effectively compare current oral treatments and patches, which may have different strengths and weaknesses, the results of this study are “as a next step towards a future with more treatments for food allergies.” , which is very good news for young children and their families.” Archis TogiasAn allergist at the National Institutes of Health, who was not involved in the study, wrote in an editorial accompanying the paper: