Anaphylactic Shock Research Paper

1263 Words6 Pages

Elliott Cole
Mr. Jason Long, Instructor
EMS Academy
20 January 2016
Anaphylactic Shock
Anaphylactic shock and Anaphylaxis are serious medical conditions that are a result of insufficient blood flow throughout the body. Anaphylactic shock refers to severe hypersensitivity or an allergic reaction. Causes of Anaphylaxis often include allergic reaction to foods, medications, or insect stings. Anaphylactic shock on the other hand, is a medical emergency which can lead to other conditions such as a lack of oxygen in the body 's tissues (hypoxia), heart attack, cardiac arrest and even severe organ damage. Anaphylactic shock requires immediate medical care and treatment for the symptoms which can worsen rapidly.
The first documented case of anaphylactic …show more content…

On initial presentation both of these types of reactions appear the same and are treated in the same manner. The biggest difference between the two is that patients with IgE mediated reactions had to have undergone a previous episode involving a reaction. In other words, someone would have had an allergic reaction to the same substance at an earlier point in time. Both IgE immune and IgE mediated reactions can be caused from common foods such as a nut or shellfish. Medications can be a cause of anaphylaxis from a product that is used to make the medication or from a preservative that is used in the medication to increase its shelf life. Another common type of reaction is caused by insect stings or bites. When an insect stings or bites it releases a toxin which, when introduced into the blood stream can cause a reaction leading to anaphylaxis in extreme …show more content…

Allergy shots would be recommended for a person who suffers from reactions to wasps, honey bees, hornets, yellow jackets, and fire ants. The allergy shots are found to provide around ninety-eight percent protection against all the insects except for fire ants. The protection against fire ants is around ninety- five