Medication Allergies

If you're allergic to penicillin, erythromycin, sulfa drugs or any other medication, it's important to make this information known to all of your health care providers and pharmacies. It's especially vital to be sure that this allergy information would be accessible to medical personnel if you were unconscious and unable to inform them verbally.

For example, if you are allergic to eggs, are not able to speak, and must receive general anesthetic, it is essential that medical staff know about your egg allergy so that they avoid administering an anesthetic called propofol, which contains egg derivatives. This is something that I learned a few years ago, just in time for my first pregnancy. As it turned out, I needed an emergency c-section, and they very nearly put me under general anesthetic. (In the end, they used local anesthetic, which is generally a better option unless you happen to be allergic to the freezing agents such as xylocaine or marcaine.) Fortunately, my allergies were very clearly displayed in my chart. I made certain of that!

When it comes to choosing your medical identification system, you have several options:

1. The first of these is a Medic-Alert bracelet or necklace. In addition to the convenience of wearing your allergy information so that it may be easily located, Medic-Alert offers a telephone service so that medical staff can enter a code number found on the bracelet or necklace itself and find out more about your medical history (e.g., allergy and other health information that does not fit onto the engraved surface). Another important component of this telephone service is that of Medic-Alert being able to inform your family members, friends and/or doctors of your whereabouts and condition. Altogether, highly recommended.

2. The second option is a store-bought bracelet or necklace that is pre-engraved with a simple condition or two, such as "Diabetes", "Asthma", or "Allergic to Amoxicillin". The benefit of this is that it is less expensive than the other options, and it does alert medical personnel to the existence of an important health condition. However, it usually doesn't allow them to contact designated individuals, and it can't encompass too many health conditions. So, unfortunately, if you're asthmatic, have a peanut and egg allergy, and are allergic to latex, the store-bought jewelry simply won't cover it all. This could be potentially risky.

3. The third option is subscription to a medical information database. I'm actively researching this option for myself, and I'll be editing this section when I find out more!

Wishing you an allergy-safe day!

© 2009 Allergytimes.com. All rights reserved. This article is provided for general informational purposes only, and is not intended to replace medical advice. When in doubt, please consult with a licensed allergist.