National trends in emergency department visits and hospitalizations for food-induced anaphylaxis in US children

BACKGROUND Food is the leading cause of anaphylaxis in children seen in emergency departments in the United States, yet data on emergency department visits and hospitalizations related to food-induced anaphylaxis are limited. The objective of our study was to examine national time trends of pediatric food-induced anaphylaxis-related emergency department visits and hospitalizations. METHODS We conducted an observational study using a national administrative claims database from 2005 through 2014. Participants were younger than 18 years with an emergency department visit or hospitalization for food-induced anaphylaxis. Outcome measures of our study included time trends of pediatric food-induced anaphylaxis-related emergency department visits and hospitalizations, including observations (in an emergency department or a hospital unit), inpatient admissions, and intensive care unit admissions. RESULTS During the study period, participants had 7310 food-induced anaphylaxis-related emergency department visits. Emergency department visits for food-induced anaphylaxis increased by 214% (P