Letters to the Editor

I am grateful to you for providing me with an opportunity to reply to a letter from Drs. Lahey, Wilson, and Heiner. Their suggestion that certain cases of otherwise unexplained rectal bleeding may be the result of a milk allergy is an excellent one. Certainly, apart from the child with an exsanguinating gastrointestinal hemorrhage, an attempt should be made to determine the effects of ingestion of cow's milk. This is especially indicated in the infant under 2 years of age. An older child, say of 8 years, presenting for the first time with unexplained rectal bleeding is not likely to have cow's milk incriminated.