Food Allergy In Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis :

Mosad Abd Elfattah Mohamed

The relation between food hypersensitivity and rheumatoidarthritis was a subject of intrest in the last years,many authors had attempted to link between both. The aim ofthis work is to find possible relation between rheumatoidarthritis and food hypersensitivity in patients with complaintof exaggeration of symptoms after eating certain typesof food. The only method available is the food challenge anddiet manipulation. In our stUdy 32 patients with rheumatoidarthritis and exaggeration of symptoms after eating certaintypes of food were tested for total serum IgE and specificIgE for food antigens before and after food challenge withthe suspect food.This work showed that :Firstly: Before food challenge the serum level of total IgEwas higher than normal values in five out of thirty twopatients and the specific IgE was undetectable in all patients.Secondly: After food challenge total serum IgE was high ineleven out of thirty two patients and specific IgE for eggwas high in four patients and two patients for fish, noelevation of specific IgE for milk or meat antigens.The L.M.I.F was positive in two patients only withnormal total and specific IgE.These results showed that there is a correlation betweenthe serum level of total and specific 19E and thechange of symptoms with the offending food which may be thecause of these symptoms or at least it perpetuate the originaldisease specially in those patients with 8.1.T. troubleswhich form a link in the visious circle betweenantigen and the joint disease.the food