Codfish Oral Immunotherapy in Children Aged 2-10: Randomized Placebo-Controlled Study.

BACKGROUND

For young children with fish allergy, dietary avoidance is the current standard of care. We aimed to assess whether codfish oral immunotherapy (OIT) can induce desensitization or sustained unresponsiveness (SU) in this population.

METHODS

We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study in Hong Kong. Children aged 2-10 years reactive to codfish protein during DBPCFC were randomly assigned 1:1 to codfish OIT or placebo for 52 weeks (1000 mg daily maintenance) followed by 8 weeks avoidance. Primary outcome was desensitization at week 52; sustained unresponsiveness (SU) at week 60 was a key secondary outcome.

RESULTS

Between November 2022-September 2023, 70 children (median age 5.6 years) were randomized to codfish OIT (n = 35) or placebo (n = 35). At the week 52 end-of-treatment challenges, 15 (43%) OIT participants versus 4 (11%) placebo achieved desensitization (risk difference 32%, 95% CI 9%-51%; p = 0.003), with significantly greater increases in cumulative tolerated protein [median 4330 mg vs. 0 mg, p < 0.001]. At week 60, SU rates were 8 (23%) versus 3 (9%) (risk difference 14%, 95% CI -5% to 33%; p = 0.332). Codfish OIT significantly decreased codfish-specific IgE, rGad c1-specific IgE, and skin reactivity while increasing codfish-specific IgG4. The treatment demonstrated acceptable safety with minimal moderate-to-severe adverse events and epinephrine use (3% both groups), and immunological evidence of reduced cross-reactivity to salmon and catfish allergens.

CONCLUSIONS

In children with fish allergy, codfish OIT significantly increased desensitization rates compared to avoidance, though SU remained limited. The treatment demonstrated acceptable safety with predominantly mild reactions and reduced IgE cross-reactivity to other fish allergens.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT05590299.