History and cofactors
History of at least one previous reaction to peanut, usually milder, was more common (n=192; 42%) than the same history in the other food anaphylaxis subgroup (n=569; 38%) (p=0.001). Previous anaphylaxis to peanut was reported in 23 cases (12%), and to other food in 88 cases (15%) (Table 1).
Peanut allergy was already diagnosed before the recorded anaphylaxis in 45% of cases (n=167, specified in n=371 out of 459), significantly higher than for other food triggers (33%; n=409, specified in 1243 out of 1503) (p<0.001) (Table 1).
Allergic comorbidities were frequent in both subgroups (n=296; 64% vs n=991; 66%). Asthma was more common in the peanut cohort (n=150; 47% vs n=359; 35%; p<0.001), with no difference in the frequency of respiratory symptoms between children with or without concomitant asthma (data not shown). Eczema was more frequent in the other food triggers subgroup (n=126; 40% vs n=525; 51%; p=0.035), and there was no statistically significant difference between the two subgroups regarding frequency of allergic rhinitis (36% vs 33%), and other food allergy (27% vs 32%) (Table 1).
Relevant cofactors, potentially influencing allergenic threshold, were more commonly reported in peanut anaphylaxis (n=114; 29%) compared to other food triggers (n=281; 22%) (p=0.004). Physical exercise (80% vs 77%; p=0.002) and infection (14% vs 13%) were the most frequent co-factors (Table 1).