چکیده (انگلیسی):

Background: Soybeans are one of causative foods for infantile onset allergies in Japan. This study aimed to
analyze the results of soybean challenge tests that were conducted over approximately 7 years at our institution.
Using the test data,we sought to identify the responses and clinical profiles of patients with soybean
allergies, and to investigate the relationship between the responses and soybean sensitization status.
Methods: Between July 2004 and May 2010, 142 cases (125 patients) underwent food challenge tests
(100 g of silken tofu) for the diagnosis of soybean allergy or confirmation of their tolerance. The patients'
characteristics, soybean sensitization status, and responses to the challenge tests were retrospectively
evaluated.
Results: Among the subjects who underwent the soybean challenge test, the male/female ratio was 1.6
(87/55), and the mean age at the test was 2.8 ± 1.7 years. The positive rate for the challenge test was
38.7%. Induced symptoms were observed in the skin (81.8%), respiratory system (50.9%), and gastrointestinal
system/mucosal membrane/anaphylaxis (12.7%). Intramuscular epinephrine was administered to
all 7 patients who experienced an anaphylactic reaction. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive
value, negative predictive value, and diagnostic efficiency of soybean-specific IgE titers were low for
predicting the responses to the challenge test.
Conclusions: Soybean allergies were diagnosed in only 18% of the subjects with positive sensitization to
soybeans. Therefore, soybean-specific IgE titers are not an effective predictor of a positive response to the
challenge test.