Peanut Allergy Oral Challenge?

ab24

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Joined
Mar 21, 2019
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67
Good evening,

A bit new to the forum so excuse my lack of terminology that may or may not occur.

For a little background, I am a senior who received a 4 year AROTC scholarship and a 4 year NROTC scholarship. However, I was diagnosed with a peanut allergy. This was around I was 11, and have had zero history of anaphylaxis and was never prescribed an epi-pen. The way I found out? My mom had a "hunch." No allergic reaction or dramatic rush to the hospital. Nothing. Being the rebellious son I always was, I didn't really avoid peanuts throughout my life and never have had any reactions to them.

After reading many of the (scary) posts on this forum regarding the automatic DQ, I noticed that there was a possibility of a waiver if the candidate could pass a supervised peanut challenge. So, I got tested again in january to see what I could do to mitigate this being a problem in the future.
While I did test positive initially for peanuts, the doctor observed that I was not reacting whatsoever to small doses of peanuts and then scheduled a full peanut challenge a few months later.

Now, today, I ate 20 peanuts in front of an allergist with no reaction and a certifying document to boot. The document certifies that I am capable of consuming excessive amounts of peanuts and do not need a restricted diet. I understand that the Army is more "reasonable" when it comes to allergy waivers, but I have not heard much about NROTC. My dodmerb exam is on Friday, and I am wondering if there is a chance that the peanut challenge will be enough to get me qualified initially despite my childhood medical history. Should I bring the document? Or wait until a waiver or remedial is requested?

Before anyone decides to jump down my throat about reading the other posts on this forum regarding this topic, I have read them plenty. Almost to the point where it has gotten unhealthy. I am just wondering if anyone has had any recent success with allergy waivers after a full oral challenge. I called Concorde, and they essentially said just bring the document and hope for the best. If anyone has any previous experience or advice that would be more than appreciated.
 
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My DS has a history of the dreaded peanut allergy and he was DQ. The history of peanut/tree nut allergy is an automatic DQ and you will need to disclose. DS successfully past the oral challenge and the information was then submitted back to DODMERB at which time his status changed to pending waiver. If you are a competitive candidate then the service academy will request a waiver for you which happened for m DS. I would take the paperwork with you to the exam because maybe it will expedite the process.

Good Luck.
 
I think it is fine to take the paperwork with you BUT make sure you don't take your only copy!

The DoDMERB doctor doing the exam will be focused on filling out the form for the aspects of the exam he/she is on contract to perform. He/She may or may not take your paperwork and even if they do, they may not submit it back to DoDMERB. Be aware the doctor that does your DoDMERB exam has no call on whether you are medically qualified or DQ. They just put medical information they glean from their exam of you into the system. The doctors back at DoDMERB then compare the infromation your put on your form and the information provided by the doctor from the exam against the medical reg.

Based on your answers to questions 13 & 60 on the DoDMERB exam form, they will in all likelihood determine you are "DQ". DoDMERB will then most likely note a "remedial" in your record and ask you for any medical paperwork you have on your condition. It will then be up to the ROTCs (AROTC and NROTC separately) to decide if they will use or accept the testing done by your allergist or if they want you to perform additional testing and whether they will grant a medical waiver. The good news is you have already been awarded ROTC scholarships so you know they want you. They will work it. Best wishes to you and thank you for being willing to serve.
 
I think it is fine to take the paperwork with you BUT make sure you don't take your only copy!

The DoDMERB doctor doing the exam will be focused on filling out the form for the aspects of the exam he/she is on contract to perform. He/She may or may not take your paperwork and even if they do, they may not submit it back to DoDMERB. Be aware the doctor that does your DoDMERB exam has no call on whether you are medically qualified or DQ. They just put medical information they glean from their exam of you into the system. The doctors back at DoDMERB then compare the infromation your put on your form and the information provided by the doctor from the exam against the medical reg.

Based on your answers to questions 13 & 60 on the DoDMERB exam form, they will in all likelihood determine you are "DQ". DoDMERB will then most likely note a "remedial" in your record and ask you for any medical paperwork you have on your condition. It will then be up to the ROTCs (AROTC and NROTC separately) to decide if they will use or accept the testing done by your allergist or if they want you to perform additional testing and whether they will grant a medical waiver. The good news is you have already been awarded ROTC scholarships so you know they want you. They will work it. Best wishes to you and thank you for being willing to serve.


Thank you so much for your reply. As for the survey, I only marked question 13 "yes". As the God honest truth, I have had zero reaction to any food, as reflected on my medical history. I believe question 60 was only asking if I have ever had an averse reaction, which I haven't. Not even rashes. I was just tested on a hunch by a very needle-happy physician.
 
DoDMERB will most likely send you the “allergy supplemental information sheet” in response to your DoDMERB form before passing judgment. Be honest and send the info you have from your medical records as part of that submittal ... perhaps no DQ ... keep us apprised ...
 
Peanut/tree nut allergy and NROTC DQ

My Class of 2023 son received 4 yr $180k NROTC scholarship this spring. Excellent physical exam. Disclosed nut allergies at that time. After going through the medical waiver procees and then this week the remedial process, was DQd for nut allergies. He's had epi-pens since elementary school and never used them. While he avoids eating nuts, we keep/eat all types of nuts in our home. He eats foods cooked in oeanut oil. But avoids eating whole nuts. Had 2 incidents of unknowingly eating cashews in 10 years and his body quickly cleared them from his digestive system. No anaphylaxis. Based on his iGe numbers and peanut skin prick test results, allergist didn't want to do oral challenge. Today he was notified by NROTC unit of medical DQ. The grandson of a retired CDR and Naval aviatior, our son has wanted to be a Naval officer since he was 6 years old. We are heartbroken :)
 
Mom — so sorry to hear this. Your DS might consider asking his NROTC cadre if there is way to appeal the NROTC’s medical waiver authority’s decision. If there is, good.

If not, and if your DS could see himself serving in the Army, he might next check with the AROTC cadre at his school to see if they can help. Each case is different and depends on the details of the allergy but the Army has granted waivers for this condition in the past.
 
Just wanted to post this as an update because I saw that I hadn't updated this forum.

I was qualified for NROTC and AROTC after successfully completing a full peanut challenge and sending further paperwork in for my DODMERB remedial.
 
Hi There,

New to the forum and was hoping to get some info regarding the DoDMERB oral challenge at a designated facility. I have read some posts above about a peanut oral challenge. How many peanuts need to be eaten at an oral challenge to be considered waived? Thanks in advance.
 
Follow-up posting: As others have suggested, continued to fight the DQ! DS had peanut oral challenge yesterday at Navy med facility and passed it with no reaction. This report corroborates recent blood test done at same facility.

Now DS is moving on to the tree nut oral challenges, starting with those reported to be little/no reaction on blood test. We're being advised to be as specific as possible about tree nut waiver request.

This whole process is nerve-wracking but we won't give up with $180K NROTC Tier 3 scholarship for out-of-state university tuition ($$$) at stake.
 
Sorry to hear that unfortunately peanut allergy is DQ for all Military apps to ROTC and SAs. Very unfortunate to hear this for so many great kids who want to serve. Apparently military doesn’t give waivers yet on peanut allergy. If your kid still wants to serve your kid can still serve in the military as civilian GS. Like mil intel Naval or Air Force Intel. Cyber etc. I think there is some kind of tuition forgiveness program with the GS Path.
 
Can you tell me the details of the nut challenge? How many of each nut do you have to eat and which nuts exactly were tested? I have a son that's in a similar situation. I was the mom that had the "hunch" and had my son allergy blood tested. He has never had to use an epi pen and was prescribed one one time as precautionary. Now he's looking at either enlisting or going the ROTC route. Thanks!
 
Our DS did his peanut oral challenge at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (aka Navy Med) on Wednesday.
Amount of nuts tested was 28g total weight of peanuts, a standard serving size. DS had no salt, roasted peanuts. The test consisted of 4 incremental increasing doses of peanuts, with 15 minute intervals between each.

Based on blood test done by military lab (vs commercial one), DS was not allergic to peanuts. The oral challenge results bore this out. It was so good to finally know that DS isn't allergic to peanuts.

DS started tree nut allergy oral challenge with pecan/walnut last Friday morning. These two nuts were mixed together for the testing (56g total) in same 4 incremental increasing amounts. After waiting 2 hours at the end of that test, DS' face was red and he was itchy. Doc gave him pharmacy strength Zyrtec and test was over.

Not sure if any additional tree nut testing will be done. DS must be antihistamine-free for 5 days prior. School activities start next week. DQ for NROTC 4yr scholarship still being appealed by us.

Hope this is helpful to you.
 
Our DS did his peanut oral challenge at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (aka Navy Med) on Wednesday.
Amount of nuts tested was 28g total weight of peanuts, a standard serving size. DS had no salt, roasted peanuts. The test consisted of 4 incremental increasing doses of peanuts, with 15 minute intervals between each.

Based on blood test done by military lab (vs commercial one), DS was not allergic to peanuts. The oral challenge results bore this out. It was so good to finally know that DS isn't allergic to peanuts.

DS started tree nut allergy oral challenge with pecan/walnut last Friday morning. These two nuts were mixed together for the testing (56g total) in same 4 incremental increasing amounts. After waiting 2 hours at the end of that test, DS' face was red and he was itchy. Doc gave him pharmacy strength Zyrtec and test was over.

Not sure if any additional tree nut testing will be done. DS must be antihistamine-free for 5 days prior. School activities start next week. DQ for NROTC 4yr scholarship still being appealed by us.

Hope this is helpful to you.

Can you please keep me updated on the appeal for the walnut allergy?!? My son also has this allergy, but can eat all other nuts. I am very curious to see if this is waived as walnuts are very avoidable. I have heard good things about tree-nut waivers, but would love to know if the stories are just myths. Thank you and good luck to your son, I will be pulling for him!
 
I will definitely be pulling for him also! I was just looking at my sons levels from his last blood test and it's not looking promising. I am contacting our local allergist to see about Oral Immunotherapy to see if we can get rid of some of these numnbers. My son is just going into his junior year so we have some time. Of course the peanut, hazelnut, and walnut are worrisome.
Allergens(7)
F013-IgE Peanut 2.94

F202-IgE Cashew Nut 0.19
F201-IgE Pecan Nut 0.66
F018-IgE Brazil Nut 0.32
F020-IgE Almond 0.38
F017-IgE Hazelnut (Filbert) 1.63
F256-IgE Walnut 2.41
 
Our DS did his peanut oral challenge at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (aka Navy Med) on Wednesday.
Amount of nuts tested was 28g total weight of peanuts, a standard serving size. DS had no salt, roasted peanuts. The test consisted of 4 incremental increasing doses of peanuts, with 15 minute intervals between each.

Based on blood test done by military lab (vs commercial one), DS was not allergic to peanuts. The oral challenge results bore this out. It was so good to finally know that DS isn't allergic to peanuts.

DS started tree nut allergy oral challenge with pecan/walnut last Friday morning. These two nuts were mixed together for the testing (56g total) in same 4 incremental increasing amounts. After waiting 2 hours at the end of that test, DS' face was red and he was itchy. Doc gave him pharmacy strength Zyrtec and test was over.

Not sure if any additional tree nut testing will be done. DS must be antihistamine-free for 5 days prior. School activities start next week. DQ for NROTC 4yr scholarship still being appealed by us.

Hope this is helpful to you.
Can you give more details about the challenge? Did SA or ROTC request the challenge as part of the waiver process after a DQ?
 
December 22, 1944

To the German Commander,

N U T S !

The American Commander
 
Can you give more details about the challenge? Did SA or ROTC request the challenge as part of the waiver process after a DQ?
FINALLY, I can give an update on our DS appeal of nut allergy waiver and NROTC 4-year $180k scholarship disqualification!!!

First, to answer your question... the challenge was not requested as part of the waiver process after the DQ. WE decided NOT to accept the DQ. Since he was 6 years old, the only thing our DS has aspired to is to become a Naval Officer.

As I mentioned in a mid-August post, the week before DS was supposed to move into his dorm and participate in the NROTC orientation program, he did an oral challenge at Walter Reed National Medical Center. We are so blessed to live in Northern VA and not too far from WRNMC. As I wrote earlier, the results of the peanut challenge showed that he is not allergic to peanuts (as we had always thought based on his pediatrician's belief). Peanuts/by-products are used in MREs, so this finding was critical.

The following Monday, DS did the walnut and pecan challenges simultaneously. My husband was present and said that it was like eating a huge amount of nuts that we would not usually eat in a few hours' time. Before the end of the incremental 4 doses 15 minutes apart, our son's face was getting red and itchy. Doctor ended the test and gave DS some liquid antihistamine (epinephrine wasn't needed). DS was fine after that. Since DS had reacted to the tree nuts which registered the lowest reaction on his blood test, the oral challenge ended. No further tree nut testing was scheduled. [Note: 3 days are required between oral challenges if any antihistamines are in the bloodstream.]

Navy MD Allergy Specialist then wrote a letter which we submitted to DoDMERB, along with information from DS's ankle specialist to clear up waiver issue with healed ankle sprain. That was mid-August. November 5th, we got word through DS' NROTC Unit that DS' appeal was successful. He was granted the "medical qualification waiver for recurrent ankle sprains and allergy to food or additives; and are eligible for an NROTC Scholarship."

The Department of the Navy letter also notes that "A waiver of the physical standards is granted for entry into NROTC scholarship programs leading to a commission in the Navy Unrestricted Line or Strategic Sealift Officer. A waiver of the physical standards IS NOT granted for entry or transfer into NROTC scholarship programs leading to a commission as a general duty Navy Unrestricted Line officer or SSO. Special Duty programs such as Aviation (flight) and undersea communities may have additional restrictions or criteria for a waiver."

We paid DS' out-of-state tuition for the first semester. NROTC scholarship will be activated next Tuesday 11/20 when DS is sworn in and becomes a bona fide member of the Unit. It's our understanding that we will be reimbursed for the tuition we paid -- a great relief. Also, DS was told his stipend will be paid retroactively from the beginning of the semester. DS has participated in all of the Unit's training and classes since Day 1 (earned an A in both classes and has been doing PT with the Marine option and spec ops-interesteds),

Moral(s) of our story.... Never Give Up (the Ship or the Appeal)! Pray fervently and ask your prayer warriors to do the same.

Signed,
Grateful parents of a soon-to-be official midshipman
 
FINALLY, I can give an update on our DS appeal of nut allergy waiver and NROTC 4-year $180k scholarship disqualification!!!

First, to answer your question... the challenge was not requested as part of the waiver process after the DQ. WE decided NOT to accept the DQ. Since he was 6 years old, the only thing our DS has aspired to is to become a Naval Officer.

As I mentioned in a mid-August post, the week before DS was supposed to move into his dorm and participate in the NROTC orientation program, he did an oral challenge at Walter Reed National Medical Center. We are so blessed to live in Northern VA and not too far from WRNMC. As I wrote earlier, the results of the peanut challenge showed that he is not allergic to peanuts (as we had always thought based on his pediatrician's belief). Peanuts/by-products are used in MREs, so this finding was critical.

The following Monday, DS did the walnut and pecan challenges simultaneously. My husband was present and said that it was like eating a huge amount of nuts that we would not usually eat in a few hours' time. Before the end of the incremental 4 doses 15 minutes apart, our son's face was getting red and itchy. Doctor ended the test and gave DS some liquid antihistamine (epinephrine wasn't needed). DS was fine after that. Since DS had reacted to the tree nuts which registered the lowest reaction on his blood test, the oral challenge ended. No further tree nut testing was scheduled. [Note: 3 days are required between oral challenges if any antihistamines are in the bloodstream.]

Navy MD Allergy Specialist then wrote a letter which we submitted to DoDMERB, along with information from DS's ankle specialist to clear up waiver issue with healed ankle sprain. That was mid-August. November 5th, we got word through DS' NROTC Unit that DS' appeal was successful. He was granted the "medical qualification waiver for recurrent ankle sprains and allergy to food or additives; and are eligible for an NROTC Scholarship."

The Department of the Navy letter also notes that "A waiver of the physical standards is granted for entry into NROTC scholarship programs leading to a commission in the Navy Unrestricted Line or Strategic Sealift Officer. A waiver of the physical standards IS NOT granted for entry or transfer into NROTC scholarship programs leading to a commission as a general duty Navy Unrestricted Line officer or SSO. Special Duty programs such as Aviation (flight) and undersea communities may have additional restrictions or criteria for a waiver."

We paid DS' out-of-state tuition for the first semester. NROTC scholarship will be activated next Tuesday 11/20 when DS is sworn in and becomes a bona fide member of the Unit. It's our understanding that we will be reimbursed for the tuition we paid -- a great relief. Also, DS was told his stipend will be paid retroactively from the beginning of the semester. DS has participated in all of the Unit's training and classes since Day 1 (earned an A in both classes and has been doing PT with the Marine option and spec ops-interesteds),

Moral(s) of our story.... Never Give Up (the Ship or the Appeal)! Pray fervently and ask your prayer warriors to do the same.

Signed,
Grateful parents of a soon-to-be official midshipman
Thank you LASmom, for the update and information. Congratulations to your son! That's fantastic! Maybe we need to request a challenge with a military dr...
 
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