Hello and welcome to a brand new series of the Zero to Finals podcast where we'll be going

through pediatric immunology. My name is Tom and in this first episode of this series we'll be going

through Allergy. You can find written notes on this topic at zero tofinals.com slash allergy

or in the immunology section of the

zero to finals pediatrics book. So let's get straight into it. Allergy is an umbrella term for

hypersensitivity of the immune system to allergens. Allergens are proteins that the immune

system recognizes as foreign and potentially harmful

leading to an allergic immune reaction.

These proteins are types of antigen.

Antigens are proteins that can be recognized by the immune system.

The body will come in contact with millions of different antigens and very few

will lead to a hypersensitivity reaction. The ones that do are called allergens. A to P is a term

used to describe a predisposition to having hypersensitivity reactions to allergens.

It refers to a tendency to develop conditions such as exma, asthma, hay fever,

allergic rhinitis and food allergies.

These conditions are referred to as atopic conditions.

Often when patients have one atopic condition, they'll have

others as well, and atapy tends to run in families. Let's talk about the importance of establishing

and excluding allergies. Having a food allergy can have a huge psychosocial burden on a child, particularly in those patients who have anaphylaxis or an Epipen.

It means having to check all food labels for the ingredients, ensuring that all those who are responsible for the child are aware, for example, the school or other parents

or carers or relatives, and being very cautious or avoiding eating out in restaurants or anywhere

with unlabeled food where allergens may have made their way into the food.

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