Should milk-specific IgE antibodies be measured in adults in primary care?

Objective. To study the association of milk-IgE antibodies in serum to milk-related gastrointestinal symptoms in adults in primary care. Design. Open clinical study. Setting. Five outpatient clinics in primary care in Southern Finland. Subjects. A total of 756 subjects who reported milk-related gastrointestinal symptoms in primary care and as controls 101 subjects with no such symptoms. Methods. IgE values for specific food antigens were measured (Pharmacia CAP System) in a total of 857 subjects. All food screen-positive samples (>0.35 IU/l) were analysed further for IgE for untreated skimmed milk (milk-IgE) and for boiled milk. Those found positive for milk-IgE were invited for an open milk challenge test. Results. Some 5.4% (46/857) of all subjects had a positive IgE antibody screen for food antigens. Of those with a positive food screen, 28% (13/46) had milk-IgE antibodies comprising 1.5% of the total group screened. The prevalence of milk-IgE was not statistically different between those with milk-rel...