Children can be accurately diagnosed with celiac disease without biopsy analysis. Diagnosis based on level of TGA-IgA 10-fold or more the ULN, a positive result from the EMA tests in a second blood sample, and the presence of at least 1 symptom could avoid risks and costs of endoscopy for more than half the children with celiac disease worldwide. HLA analysis is not required for accurate diagnosis. Clinical Trial Registration no: DRKS00003555.

Post-transplant food allergy is an important clinical problem in children after liver transplantation which does not affect renal transplant patients despite similar immunosuppressive regimens. Within the group of liver transplant recipients, tacrolimus use, young age at time of transplant and younger donor age were associated with the development of food allergy.

The aim of this review is to give insight on the benefits and risks of vegetarianism, with special emphasis on vegetarian child nutrition. This eating pattern excluding meat and fish is being adopted by a growing number of people. A vegetarian diet has been shown to be associated with lower mortality of ischaemic heart disease and lower prevalence of obesity. Growth in children on a vegetarian diet including dairy has been shown to be similar to omnivorous peers. Although vegetarianism in adolescents is associated with eating disorders, there is no proof of a causal relation, as the eating disorder generally precedes the exclusion of meat from the diet. A well-balanced lacto-ovo-vegetarian diet, including dairy products, can satisfy all nutritional needs of the growing child. In contrast, a vegan diet, excluding all animal food sources, has at least to be supplemented with vitamin B(12), with special attention to adequate intakes of calcium and zinc and energy-dense foods containing enough high-quality protein for young children. The more restricted the diet and the younger the child, the greater the risk for deficiencies.

Objectives: Recommendations for diagnosing and treating eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) are evolving; however, information on real world clinical practice is lacking. To assess the practices of pediatric gastroenterologists diagnosing and treating EoE and to identify the triggering allergens in European children. Methods: Retrospective anonymized data were collected from 26 European pediatric gastroenterology centers in 13 countries. Inclusion criteria were: Patients diagnosis with EoE, completed investigations prescribed by the treating physician, and were on stable medical or dietary interventions. Results: In total, 410 patients diagnosed between December 1999 and June 2016 were analyzed, 76.3% boys. The time from symptoms to diagnosis was 12 ± 33.5 months and age at diagnosis was 8.9 ± 4.75 years. The most frequent indications for endoscopy were: dysphagia (38%), gastroesophageal reflux (31.2%), bolus impaction (24.4%), and failure to thrive (10.5%). Approximately 70.3% had failed proton pump inhibitor treatment. The foods found to be causative of EoE by elimination and rechallenge were milk (42%), egg (21.5%), wheat/gluten (10.9%), and peanut (9.9%). Elimination diets were used exclusively in 154 of 410 (37.5%), topical steroids without elimination diets in 52 of 410 (12.6%), both diet and steroids in 183 of 410 (44.6%), systemic steroids in 22 of 410 (5.3%), and esophageal dilation in 7 of 410 (1.7%). Patient refusal, shortage of endoscopy time, and reluctance to perform multiple endoscopies per patient were noted as factors justifying deviation from guidelines. Conclusions: In this “real world” pediatric European cohort, milk and egg were the most common allergens triggering EoE. Although high-dose proton pump inhibitor trials have increased, attempted PPI treatment is not universal.

Colon enemas are a valuable method in achieving continence. At our center medical followup from childhood to adulthood is associated with successful acquisition of fecal pseudocontinence.