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Aim: The main objective of this study was to see how many of the children, with a suspected antibiotic allergy, developed an allergic or adverse reaction to a drug provocation test. Methods: Data on children that had undergone a drug provocation test for a suspected antibiotic allergy were compiled retrospectively for the period from 2007–2018. The median age at the first provocation was 2.25 years (1.5–5.7). Standardised questionnaires, the children's parents had answered before the provocation, were used to evaluate the originally suspected allergic reaction, previous health, atopic diseases and family history. Results: Ninety‐two (6.4%) of the 1440 children showed a possible mild allergic reaction. Sixty‐four of the 92 children underwent a second drug provocation test 1–2 years later. At that time, only eleven developed a positive‐ or a possible‐delayed reaction. Conclusion: An immediate moderate or severe allergic reaction was excluded in all cases of suspected antibiotic allergy in this study. Our study indicates that an oral drug provocation test is safe. It may be appropriate to wait for 6 months or more after the initial event of ADR before these tests are performed. A second oral provocation 1–2 years after the first one shows that ADRs are outgrown in most children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The heterogeneity and lack of validation of existing severity scores for food allergic reactions limit standardization of case management and research advances. We aimed to develop and validate a severity score for food allergic reactions. Methods: Following a multidisciplinary experts consensus, it was decided to develop a food allergy severity score (FASS) with ordinal (oFASS) and numerical (nFASS) formats. oFASS with 3 and 5 grades were generated through expert consensus, and nFASS by mathematical modeling. Evaluation was performed in the EuroPrevall outpatient clinic cohort (8232 food reactions) by logistic regression with request of emergency care and medications used as outcomes. Discrimination, classification, and calibration were calculated. Bootstrapping internal validation was followed by external validation (logistic regression) in 5 cohorts (3622 food reactions). Correlation of nFASS with the severity classification done by expert allergy clinicians by Best‐Worst Scaling of 32 food reactions was calculated. Results: oFASS and nFASS map consistently, with nFASS having greater granularity. With the outcomes emergency care, adrenaline and critical medical treatment, oFASS and nFASS had a good discrimination (receiver operating characteristic area under the curve [ROC‐AUC]>0.80), classification (sensitivity 0.87–0.92, specificity 0.73–0.78), and calibration. Bootstrapping over ROC‐AUC showed negligible biases (1.0 × 10−6–1.23 × 10−3). In external validation, nFASS performed best with higher ROC‐AUC. nFASS was strongly correlated (R 0.89) to best‐worst scoring of 334 expert clinicians. Conclusion: FASS is a validated and reliable method to measure severity of food allergic reactions. The ordinal and numerical versions that map onto each other are suitable for use by different stakeholders in different settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The prevalence of food allergy (FA) among European school children is poorly defined. Estimates have commonly been based on parent‐reported symptoms. We aimed to estimate the frequency of FA and sensitization against food allergens in primary school children in eight European countries. Methods: A follow‐up assessment at age 6‐10 years of a multicentre European birth cohort based was undertaken using an online parental questionnaire, clinical visits including structured interviews and skin prick tests (SPT). Children with suspected FA were scheduled for double‐blind, placebo‐controlled oral food challenges (DBPCFC). Results: A total of 6105 children participated in this school‐age follow‐up (57.8% of 10 563 recruited at birth). For 982 of 6069 children (16.2%), parents reported adverse reactions after food consumption in the online questionnaire. Of 2288 children with parental face‐to‐face interviews and/or skin prick testing, 238 (10.4%) were eligible for a DBPCFC. Sixty‐three foods were challenge‐tested in 46 children. Twenty food challenges were positive in 17 children, including seven to hazelnut and three to peanut. Another seventy‐one children were estimated to suffer FA among those who were eligible but refused DBPCFC. This yielded prevalence estimates for FA in school age between 1.4% (88 related to all 6105 participants of this follow‐up) and 3.8% (88 related to 2289 with completed eligibility assessment). Interpretation: In primary school children in eight European countries, the prevalence of FA was lower than expected even though parents of this cohort have become especially aware of allergic reactions to food. There was moderate variation between centres hampering valid regional comparisons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]