What is Anaphylaxis?
Anaphylaxis is a life threatening allergy characterised by:
- difficulty breathing
- swelling of the mouth and throat, and
- rashes.
Collapse and unconsciousness follow swiftly. The whole body is affected by the reaction usually within minutes of exposure to the allergen.
Common causes of anaphylaxis include:
- Peanuts
- Wasp & Bee Stings
- Tree Nuts
- Kiwi
- Milk
- Sesame
- Fish & Shellfish
- Latex
- Drugs
- Penicillin
- Lupin
First Aid Treatment of anaphylactic reaction
- Sit the person down
- if feeling dizzy or faint lie them down and raise their legs.
- Call 999
- Assist them to find their medication (Epi-pen, Emerade or Jext device) and assist them to administer it into the upper outer thigh.
- Make a note of the time they injected themselves.
- Stay with them until help arrives.
- Be prepared to resuscitate if necessary.
What Anaphylaxis training courses are available?:
Two training courses are available for those who may be exposed to, or care for those who may be exposed to an anaphylactic reaction.
- The standard anaphylaxis and epi-pen training course is suitable for those who care for or are responsible for anyone who is known to suffer from severe allergic reactions. It runs for between 1.5 and 2 hours.
- We also offer a 3-hour course which covers anaphylaxis and includes a topup of your CPR skills.