Clinical features and treatment of pediatric patients with drug-induced anaphylaxis: a study based on pharmacovigilance data.

We assessed the clinical features and treatment of pediatric patients with drug-induced anaphylaxis in clinical settings. Pediatric drug-induced anaphylaxis cases collected by the Beijing Pharmacovigilance Database from 2004 to 2014 were analyzed. A total of 91 cases were identified. Drug-induced anaphylaxis was primarily caused by antibiotics (53%). Children of 0-5 years were more likely to develop cyanosis symptoms than children of 13-17 years (OR = 5.14, 95%CI [1.74, 15.20], P = 0.002). Children of 13-17 years were more likely to develop hypotension than children of 6-12 years (OR = 11.79, 95%CI [2.28, 60.87], P = 0.002), and to manifest both neurological symptoms (OR = 3.56, 95%CI [1.26, 10.08], P = 0.015) and severe anaphylaxis than children of 0-5 years (OR = 15.46, 95%CI [1.85, 129.33], P = 0.002). Supratherapeutic doses of epinephrine were more likely with intravenous (IV) bolus (92%) in contrast to either intramuscular (IM) (36%, OR = 19.25, 95%CI [1.77, 209.55], P = 0.009) or subcutaneous (SC) injections (36%, OR = 19.80, 95% CI [1.94, 201.63], P = 0.005). Only 62 (68%) patients received epinephrine treatment as the first-line therapy. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that antibiotics were the most common cause of pediatric drug-induced anaphylaxis. Children may present with different anaphylactic signs/symptoms based on age groups. Epinephrine is under-utilized and provider education on the proper management of drug-induced anaphylaxis is warranted. What is Known: • The most common causes of anaphylaxis in children are allergies to foods. Drugs are the second most common cause of pediatric anaphylaxis. • IM epinephrine is the recommended initial treatment of anaphylaxis. What is New: • Drug-induced anaphylaxis in pediatric patients has age-related clinical features. • IV bolus epinephrine was overused and associated with supratherapeutic dosing.

A Clinical Practice Guideline for the Emergency Management of Anaphylaxis (2020).

Background: For anaphylaxis, a life-threatening allergic reaction, the incidence rate was presented to have increased from the beginning of the 21st century. Underdiagnosis and undertreatment of anaphylaxis are public health concerns. Objective: This guideline aimed to provide high-quality and evidence-based recommendations for the emergency management of anaphylaxis. Method: The panel of health professionals from fifteen medical areas selected twenty-five clinical questions and formulated the recommendations with the supervision of four methodologists. We collected evidence by conducting systematic literature retrieval and using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. Results: This guideline made twenty-five recommendations that covered the diagnosis, preparation, emergency treatment, and post-emergency management of anaphylaxis. We recommended the use of a set of adapted diagnostic criteria from the American National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network (NIAID/FAAN), and developed a severity grading system that classified anaphylaxis into four grades. We recommended epinephrine as the first-line treatment, with specific doses and routes of administration for different severity of anaphylaxis or different conditions. Proper dosage is critical in the administration of epinephrine, and the monitor is important in the IV administration. Though there was only very low or low-quality evidence supported the use of glucocorticoids and H1 antagonists, we still weakly recommended them as second-line medications. We could not make a well-directed recommendation regarding premedication for preventing anaphylaxis since it is difficult to weigh the concerns and potential effects. Conclusion: For the emergency management of anaphylaxis we conclude that: • NIAID/FAAN diagnostic criteria and the four-tier grading system should be used for the diagnosis • Prompt and proper administration of epinephrine is critical.