A small retrospective study suggests that eliminating cow’s milk, without other interventions, can be effective in the treatment of Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EoE) (JPGN 2012; 55: 711-16).

Out of 161 children with EoE, 17 patients were identified who excluded only cow’s milk from their diet.  Remission was noted in 65%.  Complete histologic remission (≤1 eosinophil/hpf) was noted in 7 patients (41%) and 4 (24%) had “significant remission” (defined as peak eosinophil count of 2-15/hpf).

This study, conducted in Chicago, took place between 2006-2011.  The majority of the patients treated at this institution are treated with dietary elimination: 61% with empiric elimination diet, 8% empiric elimination diet with topical steroids, and 7% with elemental diet.

The authors suggested that younger children may be more likely to benefit from this approach but cautioned against drawing firm conclusions due to the small ‘scope’ of this retrospective study.

•  Guidelines for Eosinophilic Esophagitis | gutsandgrowth

• EoE: Drugs, Diets, Dilatation and PPI-REE | gutsandgrowth

• Picking the right diet for EoE | gutsandgrowth

• The undiscovered country | gutsandgrowth

• Look of improvement on an EoE diet | gutsandgrowth