Is this an allergic reaction or just a bad side effect?

[TazziRN, RN]

I helped our CRNA with a blood patch the other day. She's new to our facility so we were chit-chatting, and I mentioned the horrible reaction I'd had to the lidocaine used in my spinal when I had a c-section. Almost as soon as the lido was injected I became extremely nauseous and ended up puking through the entire section and PACU recovery. Later I found out from one of the docs who was there (a friend of mine) that I was apparently so pale and hypotensive that they kept checking to make sure I was still breathing. The CRNA said, "Wow, a true lidocaine allergy, that's not common."

I always thought it was just extreme side effects. If a pt told you that he had this reaction to lido, would you consider it an allergy?

[canoehead, BSN, RN]

I think this would be diagnosing, without actually examining you or seeing what happened I have not a clue. Were you entering transition? Was it the position change? stress? who knows?

[mom23RN]

I'm not so much concerned with what to "call it" technically. Whatever it was you had an adverse reaction and if my patient said he had a reaction like that I would just make sure he didn't get it again.

[meownsmile, BSN, RN]

I to wouldnt care what it was called, side effect, allergic reation whatever. The fact you had such a reaction to it would lead me to treat it just like we would someone who gets nauseated and sick from a pain medication. Dont let anyone give it to you again.

[Nurse Ratched, RN]

I to wouldnt care what it was called, side effect, allergic reation whatever. The fact you had such a reaction to it would lead me to treat it just like we would someone who gets nauseated and sick from a pain medication. Dont let anyone give it to you again.

True dat. I'd just explain whenever the allergy question comes up that you reacted thusly when you received x drug, that you're not sure if it was an allergy, side effect or something else.

[TazziRN, RN]

I think this would be diagnosing, without actually examining you or seeing what happened I have not a clue. Were you entering transition? Was it the position change? stress? who knows?

I don't think this would be diagnosing, since I'm asking for a nursing opinion. Maybe I wasn't clear on that. No, I wasn't in transition; no, it wasn't the position change because it started while I was still sitting up.

As with almost all drugs I knew that nausea was a side effect, but whenever I've had to put a pt on lido I've sent them to the unit fairly quickly; I've never had them with me long enough to see any side effects other than resolution of ventricular arrhythmias.