Pa.com questionable answer

[lakeswimr]

Didn't the child who somehow got fed allergens and got an itchy mouth at a school party get Benadryl and then his mother drove him to the hospital where he had no other symptoms until he suddenly stopped breathing and his heart stopped?  He nearly died and was on life support but thankfully he recovered.  The scary thing about that reaction is that by most plans or many he would not get the epi pen.  E was very lucky to have been in the ER when he was.   Did Benadryl make early symptoms that would have warned the reaction was continuing and spreading inside?   Could he had had things like extensive hives and itchiness without it ?  My sons allergist warns Benadryl can mask early symptoms.   FAANs official line was that with Ana symptoms will appear over the Benadryl.   From reading elsewhere it seems allergists are split 50:50 on whether to give Benadryl first for mild do tons.  My sons allergist is not alone in his advice, though.  I think and I think my sons allergist would agree that usually Benadryl won't make any difference but sometimes you could fail to get n earlier heads up theist the reaction is spreading inside.   

[lakeswimr]

We would only need to convince the writer of the danger of their advice once, not reply I every thread.  I honk given there are newbies and that people could die from this bad advice it is worth trying to write to them.   

[ajasfolks2]

There is always their FB page to reply at or link to their mistaken info . . . and then "comment" away.  Likely, that would get more eyes-on.

KWIM?

Just sayin'.

[lakeswimr]

Oh, I didn't know that !

[Jessica]

Has anyone seen this latest article?
http://www.peanutallergy.com/articles/peanut-allergy/epinephrine-overdose
says to contact a doctor before using a 2nd dose. What if someone is 30 minutes away from a hospital and it's after hours. What are the odds of getting in touch with a doctor on the way to the ER so you can get permission OVER THE PHONE (would they be able to tell over the phone whether or not it's safe to use a 2nd dose??) to take another dose. Ain't nobody got time for that.

[CMdeux]

 


yeah, the time to discuss a second dose (or a third... or a fourth...) is when you're hammering out an action plan with your doc.

[Mfamom]

i know, i finally asked them to remove me from their email list.  some of the crap i was getting from them was just that.  CRAP. 

[Jessica]

The person who wrote the article is not a medical professional at all. Doesn't even cite sources. So damn irresponsible.

[twinturbo]

I still say it's become content farming to drive traffic.

[CMdeux]

Yup.

[ajasfolks2]

Pisses me off that the old content FROM US and history (to include OT) was lost . . . none of the links in threads work (to other threads there) so that many conversations are useless.

Pisses me off.

[jschwab]

I'm curious how you think people should be advised who are likely to make bad decisions? Everyone here is here because they aim for zero reactions, but not everyone with allergy, especially adults, manages risk that way and they are not necessarily being advised to zero out their risk by experts, including doctors. I don't feel now like I can personally asses whether my allergies are more serious or less serious but I have done that in the past and taken bizarre risks that ended up OK. It all served to reinforce my idea that I could successfully manage contact with my allergens with little risk. A long time ago, before I ever developed food allergies, a friend told me about their friend who was allergic to tree nuts. She would eat a nut candy once a year or so when she could not stand the denial anymore and just jab herself with the Epi. I thought that was crazy then and I knew next to nothing about food allergies, and it's an extreme example, but I'm amazed at how reckless folks are. Someone recently told me about a relative who is now actually cognitively impaired from having too many anaphylactic incidents. From that perspective, minimizing the risk of going to a Thai restaurant with peanut allergy by taking certain precautions as recommended in the column may make sense for some personalities (never mind that a website should never be handing out medical advice like that which is an absolutely true point). Even if you look at the advice and scenarios often presented in allergy magazines like Living Without, the message is often given that adults can be pretty cavalier and be just fine. I guess it's like anything else in public health - there is risk reduction that works better with some people than in others and the question is what level of alarm will reach people the best?

[candyguru]

" The effects of the injection usually wear off within 10 to 20 minutes. Patients are advised to seek immediate medical attention within this timeframe.

To avoid the risk of an overdose, do not repeat doses of epinephrine without contacting a doctor. "

===================================================================

hmm... so you have a severe reaction and use an epi-pen...  10 mins pass by, the ambulance hasn't arrived, the epi-pen is wearing off, and you can't reach your doctor as it is after hours..

so you are not supposed to use your 2nd epi-pen?

bad advice! 

[SilverLining]

Paramedics here are only allowed to give two doses.  If patient has self-administered, then they can only give one dose.  If patient has given two doses, then paramedics cannot give any.  However, they can monitor the patient (bp) and speak to someone at the hospital who can tell them to give a third.

I would want to be in consultation with a doctor before administering a second dose.  To a person with no training, it is possible to mistake symptoms, and to much epi can be a risk.

However, HOW that is said is very important.  And each  indivuals should speak to their own doctor in advance

[Macabre]

All instruction I have heard is to administer again in 5 minutes if no improvement. That is in our plan.