I'm allergic to.....(laundry list)!

[AOx1]

I just had a patient who listed about a million allergies. Among them was "oxygen" lol! When asked about this "allergy" she reported "it dries my nose." Here lately, it seems every must have multiple "allergies" many of which are just side effects. It makes me worry that those with true allergies might not have them taken as seriously. For example, a frequent flier boy's mom listed a zillion allergies, and her son actually had an anaphylactic reaction to nuts. But I fear this gets lost in all the other "allergies" he has. Anyone else worry about this?

[Pepper The Cat, BSN, RN]

I'm allergic to alcoholic beverages. The symptoms range from frequent urination to slurred speech, poor coordination, and memory lapses.

Oh, me too!! I didn't know other people had the same reation! HIC!

[Flo., BSN, RN]

I had a lady just last week that was allergic to tap water. The only water that she can drink is Evian, she then informed me that the hospital would have to provide this to her free of charge since it was an allergy. Best part our unit NP happened to over hear this, she comes barging into the room and says to the pt "you are not allergic to water, stop being ridiculos this instant. You are in the hospital not the Ritz Carlton." I could have hugged our NP. Oh and after that the woman had no problem drinking regular water. =)

[CorpsmanRN, BSN, RN]

I've often thought it might be helpful to list two categories per pt chart:

1. ALLERGIES: true: medications/foods to which one reacts with hives, "swelling," rash, itching, anaphylactoid reactions, etc

2. SENSITIVITIES (another word might be more descriptive/accurate): medications/foods to which one reacts with cough (d/t ACEIs, etc), GI upset, hypotension (from certain antihypertensives ), etc.

Just a thought.

This is what I was taught in my military medic course and how I view "allergies".

Years ago I educated my husband on his "allergy" to Codeine using this thought. I told him his "puking" is a sensitivity to the drug, not a true allergy (Me: No swelling, trouble breathing, or hives? ever? Him: Nope, just puking). When asked if he has allergies, he now tells providers & pharmacists "I have a sensitivity to Codeine, I vomit immediately"

[nursel56]

i hear that one a lot. and digoxin slows their heart rate. amazingly one of my patients was allergic to ambien. it made him sleepy.

on a related note, i find it amusing when tv commercials "may cause drowsiness" on an ambien ad. yes, i know there is some legal-ese reason for it, but still. . .maybe the stuff said in pharma drug ads should have their own thread based on their comedy value. "may cause blah blah blah side effects, including 'rarely' death, but call your doctor right away if you experience any of these things. . . " yeah ok but if i'm dead that might be a hard one to pull off. . . and is there really a person on the planet who reacts to sudden blindness during sexual activity by saying "nah, this can wait until tomorrow"??. . . sigh. back to the regularly scheduled topic :)

[AgentBeast, MSN, RN]

On a related note, I find it amusing when TV commercials "may cause drowsiness" on an Ambien ad. Yes, I know there is some legal-ese reason for it, but still. . .maybe the stuff said in pharma drug ads should have their own thread based on their comedy value. "May cause blah blah blah side effects, including 'rarely' death, but call your doctor right away if you experience any of these things. . . " Yeah OK but if I'm dead that might be a hard one to pull off. . . and is there really a person on the planet who reacts to sudden blindness during sexual activity by saying "nah, this can wait until tomorrow"??. . . sigh. Back to the regularly scheduled topic :)

Drug commercials are fantastic! "Drug X may cause Diarrhea, hair loss, and blindness." Where do I sign up for that!

[iNurseUK, RN]

You do get some odd real allergies though. I used to have a patient who was a regular on my old Plastics ward (with recurrent foot ulcers) who was an insulin-dependent diabetic.

She was allergic to human insulin and used the porcine kind. She was a savvy lady and always brought a good supply with her because Pharmacy always took at least 24 hours to order it in.

[LACA, BSN, LPN, RN]

I have a very strange list of allergies...let's see what ya'll think!!

I'm allergic to:

sunscreen

Aleve

Visine eye drops

walnuts

pecans

Cheddar Cheese Pringles

Crazy huh?!?

[WalkieTalkie, RN]

I too see the seekers who are allergic to everything except Dill-did. lol

The strangest one was an allergy to.............potassium. Pt. was ordered K supplement and the pharmacy refused to dispense it until the doctor wrote an order stating it was OK to administered despite the allergy. He did too, and it read like this:

OK to administer potassium despite pt's claim to being allergic AS THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS AN ALLERGY TO POTASSIUM

LMAO, I was just getting ready to post that I had a patient last night who was supposedly allergic to good ol' potassium. It's amazing that she has survived into her 60s! Needless to say, her K+ was super low, so I gave her a total of 80 mEq.

[iNurseUK, RN]

And she SURVIVED? "

Yowza. Amazin'

[WalkieTalkie, RN]

I wish hospitals would have two sections on a patient's list. One for allergies and one for intolerances (our list is clumped into one). Some of the most ridiculous things I have seen recently include the following "allergies" (actually intolerances):

morphine - "sees space people"

morphine - "agitation" (I actually gave this patient morphine while he was on the vent following an acute MI, and he was comfortable afterward).

warfarin - "makes my blood too thin"

hydrocodone - itchy/pruritis/etc... i.e. not actually an allergy, but a side effect.

aspirin - "makes me bleed too much"

amoxicillin - "vomiting, upset stomach"

metoprolol - "dizziness"

clonazepam - "makes me sleepy"

I could go on and on...

Unfortunately, because patient's list so many of these things as allergies, it makes it difficult for prescribers. Pharmacy often times sees a drug in the same class being prescribed and then has to go through a long diatribe with the patient, nurse, and prescriber before they will administer a similar medication.

[FranEMTnurse, CNA, LPN, EMT-I]

I'm allergic to alcoholic beverages. The symptoms range from frequent urination to slurred speech, poor coordination, and memory lapses.

:yeah:Me too!

[FranEMTnurse, CNA, LPN, EMT-I]

I'm really allergic to OTC niacin- It gave me anaphylaxis

Solu-Medrol gave me a PE and steroid induced myopathy

Any morphine based narcotic gives me increased pain because I have fibromyalgia

amoxicillin gives me a rash

Inderal triggered an asthma attack

Demerol also increases my pain

mysoline made me stagger

Neurontin made me stutter

Topamax altered my personality

and I'm currently taking an anti-hypertensive that makes me dizzy. I am currently monotoring my BP until tomorrow to see if the dizzy spells subside, but not so far.