BOOK 7

ALLERGIC EMERGENCIES

CHAPTER 13

ALLERGIC REACTIONS AND ANAPHYLAXIS

T o survive, you might have to leave your house and go outside. During the procedure, you risk getting stung by insects, being exposed to poison ivy and oak, and consuming unfamiliar foods. An "allergy" is when your body reacts negatively to a certain substance.

Foreign chemicals bring on allergies. Our reaction to them may be insignificant or potentially fatal. A severe reaction, anaphylaxis (also known as anaphylactic shock), can have an impact on the entire body. It may be fatal if it is severe enough.

 

Chronic and minor allergies

Localized itching and the appearance of a raised, patchy rash are typical symptoms of mild allergic responses. These responses may subside independently or with drugs like diphenhydramine (Benadryl).

Eczema, a skin disorder, can appear as a result of ongoing allergies. This rash is red, flaky, and patchy in various locations. Although 1 percent hydrocortisone cream typically works well for treating this kind of rash, it may occasionally be necessary to use a stronger steroid cream, such as clobetasol (on prescription). In the worst situations, oral medicines like prednisone may be necessary.

There are many essential oils you can apply to treat symptoms like itching if the allergic reaction is mild:

       Peppermint

       Lavender

       Chamomile (German or Roman)

       Calendula

       Myrrh

       Cypress

       Helichrysum

       Wintergreen

       Eucalyptus

       Blue Tansy

       Aloe Vera

You should mix the abovementioned oils 50/50 with olive or coconut oil before applying two drops to the affected area twice a day.

 

Hay Fever

Hay fever, sometimes referred to as allergic rhinitis or a seasonal allergy, is a group of symptoms that mostly affect the eyes and nose and are brought on by breathing in an allergen. Dust, pet dander, insect poison, fungi, or pollens can all cause hay fever. Allergic rhinitis patients may have the following signs and symptoms:

       Nasal congestion

       Sneezing

       Red eyes with tearing

       Itchy throat, eyes, and skin

Antihistamines, such as Claritin and Benadryl, are old standbys for this type of allergy. Alternative therapies for hay fever include essential oils for use on the skin from the following:

       German chamomile

       Roman chamomile

       Lavender

       Eucalyptus

       Ginger

Two drops should be applied to each temple 2-4 times daily. Alternately, place the head over a bowl of boiling water, add one drop of the oil, and inhale steadily for 15 minutes. Licorice root, stinging nettle, and St. John's wort are a few herbal teas that can be brewed and are potentially beneficial. Three times a day, consume 1 cup.

 

Neti pot

A neti pot is a helpful tool to keep on hand if you experience allergic reactions that impact your nasal passages. It resembles a tiny teapot. You can remove pollen and relieve congestion and mucus with a neti pot. Use as follows each day together with a sterile saline (saltwater) solution:

  1. Lean forward to a sink.
  2. Tilt one sideways with your head.
  3. Keep your forehead and chin at the same height to prevent water from entering your mouth.
  4. While performing the process, breathe via your mouth.
  5. Gently insert the spout into your top nose.
  6. Dispense the liquid so that it drains out the lower nose.
  7. Blowing your nose will clear your nasal passages.
  8. Turn your head to the opposite side and do it again with the opposite nostril.

The FDA has recently expressed concern with neti pots. They caution that the pots should only be used with sterilized saline because, in 2011, using tainted water resulted in the deaths of two persons.

 

Asthma

A persistent illness that impairs breathing is asthma. The airways that carry air to your lungs are impacted. These airways swell and become irritated in asthma sufferers when they are exposed to an allergen. Less air enters the lungs due to the airway's diameter being reduced. As a result, you'll experience an "asthma attack," during which you'll start to wheeze, feel tight in your chest, and cough.

Rarely can the airways narrow to the point where someone might suffocate from a lack of oxygen. Some typical allergens that set off an asthma attack include the following:

       Dander from pets or wild animals

       Dust or dust mite droppings

       Mildew and mold

       Smoke

The pollen

       Excessive stress

       Airborne pollutants

       A few medications

There are a lot of misconceptions about asthma, including the following:

       Asthma spreads easily.

       Asthma patients eventually outgrow their condition.

       If an asthmatic person relocates to a different area, their condition will improve.

And this is accurate:

       Although asthma may be dormant for a while, there is always a chance that it will flare up again.

       Asthma runs in families. A patient has a 70% probability of having asthma if both of their parents have it, compared to a 6% chance if neither parent has it.

       Asthmatic symptoms might vary from person to person and from attack to attack.

The following are the main symptoms of asthma:

       Cough

       Shortness of breath

       Wheezing (usually sudden)

       Chest tightness (sometimes confused with a heart attack)

       Rapid pulse rate and respiration rate

       Anxiety

Other signs that point to a life-threatening event exist besides these primary ones. A person with asthma who has developed cyanosis—blue/gray lips, fingertips, and/or face—is in danger.

Exhalation takes longer than inhalation in people with severe asthma. The wheezing can become louder. A patient who has gone too long without enough oxygen may get disoriented, tired, and finally pass out.

Make the diagnosis by listening to the lungs on both sides with a stethoscope. Pay particular attention to the top, middle, and bottom lung regions. You may hear the patient breathing relatively loudly and musically during a minor asthmatic attack. As asthma gets worse, less air is going through the airways, so the wheezes will have a higher pitch and perhaps not be as loud. You could not hear any sounds at all if there was no air flowing through.

A straightforward diagnostic tool, the peak-flow meter, can gauge how wide the patient's airways are. You can tell whether a patient is having a panic attack, which can exhibit some of the same symptoms as an asthma attack, by having them forcibly exhale into the device.

When the patient is healthy, measure the peak flow at baseline. Peak flow will be 20–40% lower in people with mild asthma. A severe episode is indicated by a percentage of greater than 50%. Peak flow will be somewhat near normal when there is no evidence of asthma or an upper respiratory infection in the cough. Similar reasoning applies to panic attacks; while short of breath, the peak flow is still within normal bounds.

The two pillars of effective asthma treatment are avoiding allergens that set off symptoms and keeping airways open. There are two types of medications: those that provide immediate relief from an attack and those that reduce the frequency of asthmatic attacks.

Drugs for immediate relief include bronchodilators or inhalers that widen airways, like Albuterol (Ventolin, ProventilTM). These medications ought to provide great relief and swiftly open airways. If you observe a rapid heartbeat in patients taking these medications, don't be alarmed; this is a typical side effect.

Candidates for daily control therapy include patients who take quick-relief asthma drugs more than twice per week. These medications often inhaled steroids, reduce the number of episodes when used daily. They could come as tablets or inhalers. Recall that inhalers lose their effectiveness over time. Contrary to many pills or tablets, an expired inhaler will lose its effectiveness quickly.

It's critical to identify the allergens that set off an asthma attack in a patient and devise a strategy for avoiding them as much as possible. Additionally, keep as much asthma medication as possible in case of need. Most of the time, doctors are sensitive to patients' requests for further prescriptions for their asthmatic patients.

Natural treatments can be used to treat mild to moderate asthma conditions. Quite a few drugs have been suggested to be beneficial.

Take regular drugs if your peak flow reading is 60 percent normal or less since more study is needed to confirm how much some of these substances influence severe asthma.

Never undervalue the impact of your diet. Try the following to enhance your diet and manage your asthma:

       Substitute plant proteins for animal proteins.

       Up your consumption of omega-3 fatty acids.

       Cut out dairy items like milk.

       Try to eat organic food whenever you can.

       Replace trans fats with extra-virgin olive oil as your primary cooking oil and cut back on trans fats.

       Drinking water will help you keep hydrated and reduce the viscosity of your lungs' secretions.

The ability to manage the panic response during asthmatic attacks is also thought to be aided by various breathing techniques, such as those taught in yoga classes.

 

NATURAL ASTHMA TREATMENTS

 

Tea with ginger and garlic. When the ginger tea is hot, add four minced garlic cloves. Drink it twice daily after cooling it down.

The asthmatic attack may be alleviated by ephedra, coltsfoot, codonopsis, butterbur, nettle, chamomile, turmeric, and rosemary.

Coffee. A stimulant like black, unsweetened coffee may help your lungs work more effectively during an attack. Coffee can dehydrate you, so limit your intake to no more than 12 ounces at a time.

Eucalyptus. To open airways, use steam or direct inhalation. Inhale deeply while rubbing some oil between your hands or in some steaming water.

Honey. In a few minutes, breathing should improve by taking deep breaths from a jar of honey. Drink a 12-ounce glass of water with one teaspoon of honey in it three times a day to lessen the frequency of attacks.

Ginger and licorice. In a cup of water, combine 12 teaspoons each of licorice and ginger. Licorice can cause blood pressure to increase.

Rub in mustard oil. Rub your chest and back with a mixture of mustard oil and camphor.

D vitamin A vitamin D deficit has been identified in some asthmatics.

 

ALLERGIC REACTIONS

 

An immunological reaction to an allergen may have an impact beyond the immediate area in a tiny percentage of persons. Multiple organ systems are involved in severe allergic reactions, which can be deadly.

The first anaphylactic reactions were discovered when scientists attempted to desensitize dogs to a specific poison to protect them against it. After receiving the poison a second time, several dogs succumbed to their injuries rather than being protected. Their rogue immune systems caused them to pass away.

 

Any of the following can cause anaphylaxis:

       Drugs, including aspirin, ibuprofen, anesthetics, x-ray dyes, antibiotics (like Penicillin), anesthetics, and even several heart and blood pressure medications

       Foods, including nuts, fruit, and shellfish

       Bee stings and yellowjacket wasp stings

       Latex — latex-rubber gloves

       Workout frequently after eating

       Idiopathic, which means "of undetermined cause."

Anaphylaxis has telltale signs and symptoms; the sooner you treat it, the less probable it is that it will be fatal. These are a few of them:

       Rashes. This frequently happens in locations unrelated to the primary exposure, such as an all-over rash in a person with a bee sting on their arm.

       Swelling. This may be throat- or airway-specific or universal in some cases.

       Breathing problems Asthmatics commonly experience wheezing.

       GI symptoms. These could include abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting.

       Consciousness loss The patient might seem to have passed out.

       Paresthesias. Strange sensations on the lips or mouth, especially in people with food allergies, might be a part of this.

       Shock. Reduced blood pressure and respiratory failure that results in death via coma.

Anaphylactic shock is not the same as fainting. Differentiation is discernible in numerous ways: A person who has fainted typically has a pale complexion, but someone experiencing anaphylactic shock frequently has a flushed appearance. Anaphylaxis has a rapid heartbeat, whereas fainting has a slower heartbeat. Breathing issues and skin rashes are uncommon in persons who have just fainted, but they are typical signs and symptoms of an allergic reaction.

When someone has a food allergy, they could experience the consequences very quickly; in fact, their life might be in jeopardy in just a few minutes. Serious anaphylactic response sufferers should be monitored overnight because the second wave of symptoms occurs, sometimes several hours after the exposure.

Histamine, which initiates an inflammatory reaction, is a significant participant in this anaphylactic cascade. As a result, antihistamines are drugs that combat these negative effects. Mild allergic reactions may benefit from these medications. Antihistamines in tablet form, such as diphenhydramine (Benadryl), take about an hour to properly enter the bloodstream.

This is too slow to stop an anaphylactic reaction and save lives. Chew the pill to help it enter your system more quickly if that's all you have. It might not be sufficient, though, even now. As a result, we turn to an alternative medication that is more efficient: adrenaline, also known as epinephrine, in the US.

The adrenal glands, tiny structures close to the kidneys, produce the hormone adrenaline (also known as epinephrine). Epinephrine increases blood pressure, causes your heart to beat more quickly, and opens up your airways so you can breathe. The hormone effectively combats all of the anaphylaxis's side effects. As a result, it must be included in your medical supplies.

Epinephrine, or adrenaline, is administered intravenously. Although they have been tried in the past, inhalers have drawbacks. Breathing becomes difficult with anaphylactic reactions. An inhaler won't help you much if you can't breathe via your nose or mouth.

The most widely used kit for treating anaphylaxis sold commercially is the EpiPen. It's crucial to comprehend the right usage of it. How to do it is as follows:

  1. Take the EpiPen out of the case.
  2. Make a tight fist with it.
  3. Take away the cap (some have two caps).
  4. Instruct the sufferer to sit or lie down.
  5. Maintain the thigh muscle's stillness.
  6. Firmly press the end to parallel to the thigh; you should hear a click.
  7. Maintain for ten seconds.
  8. Rub the injection site.
  9. Safely dispose of the needle.

Keep in mind that if the EpiPen isn't nearby, it won't be useful to you. Everyone in your family or group who has allergies should always have it.

Adrenaline (Epinephrine), being a liquid, won't remain active indefinitely as other tablets or capsules might. Make careful to adhere to the storage guidelines. The EpiPen shouldn't be kept in a heated environment, but it shouldn't be placed where it might freeze, as this drastically reduces its effectiveness.

When do you start stealing those priceless supplies, as you will only have a finite amount of this medication? The rule of Ds is a formula that is simple to remember:

A definite reaction is an obvious, significant reaction, such as a rash or breathing difficulties.

Any reaction that gets worse after a short while is dangerous.

Use the EpiPen before the situation becomes life-threatening if it deteriorates. Use it if you're unsure. It's a good idea to keep a few on hand.

Only if your patient has trouble breathing or has fallen unconscious is an imminent risk likely to arise. In these situations, the main causes of death are the respiratory failure or stomach acid inhalation into the lungs.

Due to ongoing heart issues or high blood pressure, certain people may not be able to take adrenaline (epinephrine). Make sure your people speak with their doctors to confirm that using it is safe.

 

OceanofPDF.com