Severe And Alarming: Delayed Anaphylactic Shock
Anaphylactic shock is the most serious type of allergy.Its symptoms generally include itchiness, shortness of breath and swelling of the throat.Without immediate medical treatment, anaphylactic shock can be lethal and can kill the affected person.Alarmingly, the symptoms and the effect of anaphylactic shock can also be delayed.
Medications, insect stings and food are major causes of anaphylactic shock.But, while allergies are often experienced within minutes of the food or drug intake or a sting from a bee, there are also cases of late reactions.Delayed anaphylactic shock is one example.
Delayed anaphylactic shock is a type of anaphylactic shock.
In 2011, a woman died in a government hospital because of delayed anaphylactic shock.The woman was a diabetic patient.She was first given a Cefuroxime injection during her first day at the hospital. Cefuroxime is an antibiotic, classified as a second generation cephalosporin.However, when this antibiotic failed to react, the hospital changed the prescription drug of the patient to Ceftazidime – a more potent third generation cephalosporin.The woman had been given 8 shots of Ceftazidime.It was during the 9th shot when the symptoms of anaphylatic shock occurred.
Delayed anaphylactic shock treatment and prevention
Skin itch particularly, in the palms of the hands and at the back of the ears may only be an inconvenient symptom of anaphylactic shock but breathing difficulty can be a big problem.There is no home treatment or first aid cure for anaphylactic shock – acute or delayed.Not, unless if there is someone with an epinephrine autoinjector.The best thing to do is bring the person to the hospital.If you are someone suffering from the symptoms of anaphylactic shock, do not wait for it to get better.Anaphylactic shock is apt to get worse and can only be treated by epinephrine injection.
Skin prick test is a method of detecting if an individual has an allergy to a drug.However, this may not be reliable.Skin prick test does not detect red meat allergy.In addition to this, the skin prick test method has also failed the diabetic patient mentioned above.
Delayed anaphylactic shock may occur.If you have a history of asthma or have meat allergy, it is important that you consider what medications or food you take.You should also be direct to the person concern (your physician, family or friend) about your allergies that they can understand you and your condition.
© Phoenix Montoya @ May 31, 2012