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A Common Drug May Help With New Red-Meat Allergy
Newser • • health
Key Points:
- A small study presented at the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology conference found that the allergy drug omalizumab (Xolair) significantly reduced the frequency or severity of reactions in 95% of 64 patients with alpha-gal syndrome (AGS), a tick-triggered allergy to red meat and some dairy products.
- Participants took omalizumab for nearly two years on average, and about one-third were able to reintroduce some red meat into their diets without severe reactions.
- Researchers caution that larger, rigorous clinical trials are needed to confirm whether omalizumab can broadly enable meat consumption for AGS patients, with current expectations leaning toward its use as protection against accidental exposure rather than full dietary reintroduction.
- AGS is caused by bites from the lone star tick, and the number of cases has been increasing in recent years.
- The study has not yet been published in a peer-reviewed journal, indicating that findings are preliminary.
