Evandro Prado

Immune allergic response in asperger syndrome

Aspergers syndrome is a subgroup of autism characterized by social deficits without language delay, and high cognitive performance. The biological nature of autism is still unknown but there are controversial evidence associating an immune imbalance and autism. Clinical findings, including atopic family history, serum IgE levels as well as cutaneous tests showed that incidence of atopy was higher in the Asperger group compared to the healthy controls. These findings suggest that atopy is frequent in this subgroup of autism implying that allergic inflammation might be an important feature in Asperger syndrome.

O conhecimento de pediatras sobre alergia alimentar: estudo piloto

Objective: To evaluate the knowledge of Brazilian pediatricians about food allergy. Methods: Data was obtained from a sent back posted written questionnaire. It was fi lled in by Brazilian pediatricians, affi liated to the Brazilian Society of Pediatrics. Data was transcript to an Excel spread sheet and the frequency of affi rmative responses was reported as percentages. Results: Data from 895 written questionnaire of pediatricians from all over Brazil, (mainly from the southeastern region - 61.6%), were analyzed. The main clinical expressions of food allergy determined by the pediatricians were: respiratory, cutaneous and systemic symptoms (equal proportions). According to these pediatricians, cow’s milk (98.9%), egg white (58.7%) and peanuts (50.9%) were the main allergens related to food allergy symptoms. Although 74.8% of the responders have indicated food dyes and food additives as associated to food allergies, only 19.4% of them knew the identifi cation code of tartrarzine. Conclusions: The presented data reinforce the need to improve the pediatricians’ knowledge about the diagnosis and treatment of food allergy, in order to assure the use of appropriate diagnostic and treatment criteria.

Peanut allergy as a trigger for the deterioration of atopic dermatitis and precursor of staphylococcal and herpetic associated infections – case report

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a multifactorial and chronic disease, with genetic, environmental, immunological and nutritional origins. AD may be aggravated by allergies associated with infections. This study aims to describe a paediatric case of AD in which the peanut allergy was the triggering factor to aggravate the disease, and was also the concomitant precursor of staphylococcal (methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus, carrier of the Panton-Valentine leukocidine (PVL) genes) and herpetic (Herpes Simplex - HSV) infections. The clinical management approach and nursing strategies promoted a favourable evolution during the hospitalization period, besides the family approach, which was essential to control any flare-up of the disease. Adherence to a recommended diet and the use of strategies to prevent any recurrent infections were important to ensure the patients quality of life.

Comparative Multicentric Double-Blind Study between Dexchlorpheniramine and Astemizole in the Treatment of Children with Perennial Allergic Rhinitis

Fifty-eight children with perennial allergic rhinitis from university centers (SP, RJ, PR—Brazil) were divided into two groups of 29 children each and received, in a double-blind test, astemizole (A) or dexchlorpheniramine (D) for 28 days. Age, sex, time of disease, and characteristics of the initial physical examination were similar in both groups. The improvement of coryza and nasal and eye itching was similar in both groups. Significantly better responses were observed in the children treated with A in relation to sneezing, watering eyes, and nasal obstruction. The increase of appetite and weight was similar in groups A and D. Drowsiness was significantly higher in group D. There was no difference in blood and urine analyses in both groups. In the global evaluation done by the physicians, group A improvement was significantly better on the 21st day of treatment. We conclude that there was a better therapeutic response, with longer duration of action and less drowsiness, in the children treated with astemizole.