Latex allergy, a special risk for patients of otorhinolaryngology and head and neck surgery?

A total of 206 patients of the otorhinolaryngology (ORL) department and 204 of the visceral surgery department of the Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich were preoperatively evaluated for latex-specific sensitization. A prick test, a questionnaire, and an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay immunoprecipitation for IgE antibodies were performed. Latex is a widely spread allergen, and it does not only concern healthcare populations. Within the ORL surgery group, 43 (20.9%) patients were sensitized against latex allergen, and 2 of them were reported to manifest symptoms in consorting with latex. In the cohort of visceral surgery patients, we detected only 23 patients (11.3%) with sensitization against latex. Moreover, most patients were positively detected with the skin prick test (86.4%), whereas the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method was less sensitive (18.3%). Patients of the ORL department were considerably more frequently exposed to latex protein particles than patients of the visceral surgery department. This difference attributes to their significant difference in mean age: 44 years in the ORL patients group versus 58 years in the visceral patients cohort. Furthermore, we did not find any correlation to the number of past operations—although undergoing any surgical procedures is a well-known risk factor in other studies about latex sensitization in surgical patients.