What are Common Causes of Anaphylaxis?
Discussion
Anaphylaxis is a potentially life-threatening hypersensitivity reaction of the body. Usually anaphylaxis is IgE mediated but complement-mediated immune complex reactions or IgG mediated reactions can cause anaphylaxis. Usually mucous membranes or skin are involved, but it is a systemic disease process with at least 2 systems involved (respiratory is second most common followed by gastrointestinal system). The epidemiology is difficult to discern but the estimated incidence is about 50-112 episodes per 100,000 person-years and estimated prevalence is 0.3-5.1%. There is data supporting an increased incidence. Overall fatality is stable at about 0.63-0.75 per million adults in the US/year.
While it would seem to be easy to diagnose, anaphylaxis can be difficult for the patient and healthcare providers to recognize. Common signs and symptoms of anaphylaxis include:
Skin rash with or without pruritus, flushing, angioedema, conjunctival or perioral edema, urticaria
Respiratory – rhinitis or nasal congestion, dyspnea, wheezing, stridor, sensation of throat closing, choking, hypoxia
Gastrointestinal – nausea, emesis, abdominal pain, diarrhea
Cardiovascular – chest pain, diaphoresis, tachycardia or bradycardia, presyncope/syncope, hypotension, end-organ dysfunction
Central nervous system – confusion, headache, hypotonia, unconsciousness, seizure
Treatment with epinephrine right away and then transportation to a medical facility that can care for pa...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - Category: Pediatrics Authors: Pediatric Education Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
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