Increased incidence of admissions for anaphylaxis in Spain 1998–2011

Abstract

We report on trends in anaphylaxis admissions in the Spanish hospital system during the period 1998-2011. Data on admissions for anaphylaxis were obtained from the Spanish Information System for Hospital Data for the period 1998-2011. Patients were selected using the codes for anaphylaxis in the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM). Poisson regression models were used to estimate incidence rate ratios. We recorded a 1.89-fold increase in admissions for anaphylaxis in Spanish hospitals during the study period, particularly in patients aged 0-14 years (1.65- to 3.22-fold until 2009 and 4.09- to 12.59-fold until 2011) and in food anaphylaxis in all age groups (2.78-fold until 2009 and 8.74-fold until 2011). The incidence of anaphylaxis is perceived as having increased in recent years, especially anaphylaxis caused by food and anaphylaxis affecting the pediatric population.

Anaphylaxis – Lessons learnt when East meets West

“…A 1.89‐fold (89%) increase in the incidence of hospital admissions for anaphylaxis, from 1.35 to 2.38 per 100 000 person‐years, between 1998 and 2011 in Spain, was reported, for which the greatest increase was in food‐induced anaphylaxis in the 0‐ to 14‐year age group. Hospital admissions for anaphylaxis in the United Kingdom also increased 615% from 1.0 to 7.0 per 100 000 population per year, translating to a rate ratio of 1.073 (95% CI 1.071‐1.075) .…”

IgE promotes type 2 innate lymphoid cells in murine food allergy

“…Food allergy is a currently intractable disease in which affected individuals exhibit dysregulated immunological responses to normally innocuous ingested protein allergens, resulting in sensitization with the production of allergen‐specific IgE antibodies. In its most severe form, the resultant IgE‐mediated hypersensitivity activated upon subsequent food ingestion can result in life‐threatening anaphylactic shock, and food allergy is thus responsible for a substantial fraction of emergency hospital visits . Incidence of the disease has risen dramatically in the last couple of decades, and current estimates suggest that around 6‐8% of children are sensitized to one or more foods in westernized nations .…”

“…In its most severe form, the resultant IgE-mediated hypersensitivity activated upon subsequent food ingestion can result in life-threatening anaphylactic shock, and food allergy is thus responsible for a substantial fraction of emergency hospital visits. [1][2][3][4] Incidence of the disease has risen dramatically in the last couple of decades, and current estimates suggest that around 6-8% of children are sensitized to one or more foods in westernized nations. 5 A recent study in JAMA Pediatrics calculated the economic burden of food allergy at around $25 billion a year, most of which is due to indirect costs and changes in lifestyle rather than direct medical care.…”

Clinical and demographic characteristics of fatal anaphylaxis in Spain (1998‐2011): A comparison between a series from the hospital system and a national forensic series

“…The study was carried out using the Spanish Minimum Basic Data Set (MBDS), which is a database created by the Spanish Ministry of Health to collect standardized clinical, demographic, and administrative information on hospital discharges throughout Spain. 23,24 The system uses the codes of the Spanish version of the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) and covers 98% of public hospitals and many private hospitals in Spain. 25 Possible cases of anaphylaxis were obtained from all discharge diagnoses using 2 strategies whose methodology has been explained elsewhere 23,26 (Table 1).…”

“…23,24 The system uses the codes of the Spanish version of the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) and covers 98% of public hospitals and many private hospitals in Spain. 25 Possible cases of anaphylaxis were obtained from all discharge diagnoses using 2 strategies whose methodology has been explained elsewhere 23,26 (Table 1). A record in the database was considered fatal anaphylaxis if the discharge type was death.…”