Cow's Milk Allergy among Children with Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and cow's milk allergy (CMA) are two common conditions that occur in infancy. This study was performed to investigate the frequency of CMA in a group of patients with GERD. METHODS: Eighty-one children with signs and symptoms of GERD were enrolled in this study. All subjects received omeprazole for 4 weeks after the initial evaluation. Empirical elimination of cow's milk from the diet was started for the patients who did not respond to the omeprazole treatment. RESULTS: Seventy-two cases presented with gastrointestinal signs and symptoms, whereas the remaining nine cases presented with respiratory complaints. After the initial treatment with omeprazole, two thirds of the cases (54 patients, 66.7%) responded well, and all of their symptoms were resolved. Cow's milk was eliminated from the diets of the remaining 27 patients. All signs and symptoms of GERD were resolved in this group after a 4 week elimination of cow's milk from the diet. CONCLUSIONS: A diagnosis of CMA was considered in one third of the pediatric cases with signs and symptoms of GERD. This finding shows that CMA can mimic or aggravate all signs and symptoms of severe GERD during infancy.