Most pediatric patients with eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) had an underlying atopic condition, according to a study published in Frontiers in Allergy. Sean McGhee, MD, PhD, and colleagues conducted a single-center retrospective study of pediatric patients aged 18 and younger with EoE. They reviewed patients’ (N=137) esophagogastroduodenoscopies (EGD) and gastrointestinal clinic visits and assessed their histologic remission rate
and therapies (ie, dietary elimination, topical steroids, proton pump inhibitor. Among participants, 80% had at least one concurrent atopic condition at diagnosis. Food allergies were the most prevalent (57%) followed by eczema (34%) and asthma (29%). Compared with patients with other atopic conditions, those with eczema and pollen food
syndrome was more likely to achieve histologic remission at a swifter rate. In patients with eczema, all modes of treatments were more successful than those without the condition. “This study suggests that EoE, like other allergic diseases, may have heterogenous phenotypes that could affect response to treatment,” the study authors wrote.
