FPIES

Read: F-PIES. It means Food Protein Induced Enterocolitis Syndrome. Now you know why it's called FPIES instead.

Mia went to the allergist today. They did the good ol' scratch test on her back. Roughly 40 pokes. On a 2 year old. Who was screaming until she was purple. And trying to kill the nurse. And spitting on me. And in general just plain old FREAKING OUT. The doctor said later, "Well, it's normally not that traumatizing, but...." And then he let the sentence run out because it would have ended with something like "BUT YOUR CHILD IS A MONSTER!" or "BUT THERE ARE OBVIOUS DISCIPLINE ISSUES HERE."

Seriously.

Good news, all the pokes came back negative. Eggs - check. Dairy - check. Turkey, rice, and tree bark - check, check. Bad news, that doesn't mean she's not "allergic" to them. That just means the allergic reaction isn't systemic - like causing hives or itching or anaphylactic shock. Because it’s a “non-IgE mediated response” – it’s a “cell mediated response.” Yeah - here's where it gets tricky unless you are an MD and understand some of the intricacies of the human body. Or words like PNEUMONOULTRAMICROSCOPICSILICOVOLCANOCONIOSIS. You’ll have to look that one up.

So, it’s a long shot, but they want to see if these ‘episodes’ could be caused by something called FPIES. Food Protein Induced Entercolitis Syndrome. (Enterocolitis pretty much means inflammation in the small and large intestines – you can probably figure out the rest.) It usually appears early in life, like when the kid stops breastfeeding (which Mia’s did), but it usually resolves by the age of 3. Instead of being an IgE (which is a type of immune response, using antibodies), it’s a response that is mediated by the actual cells in the GI tract. ONLY. Therefore, a poke test on the skin would not illicit a response – because it’s only a reaction inside the intestines. Now can you see why it’s so hard to diagnose?

So, pretty much it could be triggered by ANY food. Yes – you read that correctly. ANY FOOD ON THE PLANET. The most common are dairy, soy, and eggs. Sometimes rice. We’re supposed to cut all of that from her diet first. Then we may have to cut out fruits and vegetables. And air. Along with being gluten free, this kid now can’t have string cheese. Scrambled eggs. Yogurt. Anything made with our favorite rice flour mixture. No rice noodles. Ummm. What is she going to eat? Still haven’t figured that one out yet. I mean, I know 2 year olds are picky, but telling your kid that the only thing she can eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner is some good old H2O … Really?

So, that’s our starting point. Square one. Remember, this man is an the allergist. We still have the consult with the GI doctors. In June. Because the waiting list really is that long. And I was under the impression that the new health care reform where we will all have months on the waiting list didn’t start for a few years.