latex allergy info question & question on shellfish allergy

nurse bling · Sep 20, 2007

Hi,

There seems to be some misinformation about shellfish and iodine and betadine please view this site......http://www.sdiradiologists.com/PatientInfo/pt_iodinated contrast.htm

nurse bling · Sep 25, 2007

http://www.aaaai.org/aadmc/ate/category.asp?cat=1030

Please check this out about shellfish allergy and iodine and radiopaque dye...........

The allergy to shellfish is due to the protein in it NOT the iodine! Dragonnurse1 you need to check your info

AmyBRN · Jan 6, 2008

I know that this is an OLD post, however just thought I'd share something. I've never been officially allergy tested, but I am DEFINETLY allergic to shrimp, (hives, itching, difficulty breathing). My mom is a nurse also and when I was a kid/teen I wasn't allowed to have any shellfish after 2 or so reactions (first reaction I was with my aunt, and we weren't sure if it was something else). Anyway, when I was about 14 or so, I had a pretzel at the mall, you know the one with lots of salt, the REALLY good ones, and later on, I started getting hives and had difficulty breathing, and that had also happened again a year or so later (My reactions aren't usually immediate, usually an hour or so later I start reacting), In the salt, there is iodine, as well as in shrimp, hence I am allergic to iodine. However, I think it could be a possibility that people allergic to shrimp, are allergic to the protein, OR the iodine.

allnurses Guide · Mar 22, 2008

SO my kid eats pasta sauce one night made with shrimp, but removed because he thought the shrimp were nasty and didn't want to try one.
Enter deviated uvula, angioedema, difficulty swallowing, cough........and all be happy that dad is a smart ER nurse at the time. I max load H1 blocker, H2 blocker, and prednisone....had no epi at the time just lying around the kitchen (I do now).
I live 6 minutes from work with traffic....i make it to the ER in about 30 seconds doing 100mph. Throw my kid in the trauma bay with O2 and pulse ox and tell everyone I need the ER doc now and I log into the pyxis and grab epi.

Wow.. I almost got hives reading this story. If I lived that close to an ER, there's no way in hell I would be doing half of those extremely risky moves!

Dragonnurse1, ASN, RN · Mar 23, 2008

LAForum in Yahoo groups It is just that a support group of latex allergic people with lots of knowledge compiled be its members.

Dragonnurse1, ASN, RN · Mar 23, 2008

I "love" Doctors that ask for a positive blood test for latex allergy when 90% of dx latex allergy is history and reactions. With 250 protein and 11 currently id'ed as potential allergens - they just don't get it. Someone that has had gamma gobulin treatment will not show IgE under normal conditions.

On another note related to shrimp and shellfish, Often when they are processed the workers wear :down: latex gloves and cooking does not destroy latex proteins.

For all nurses make note of the following:

if you are uncongested when you get to work and congested 1 hr later--

when you take off latex gloves and begin to itch--

when you take off gloves and develop blisters--

you start haveing chest pain or breathing pain--

But when you are off duty for several days and all this goes away - think latex allergy. :crying2:

I am a pain for everyone because I am allergic to neoprene, latex, all adhesives, chemical cleaning odors, formaldhyde(had to wear respirator to mothers funeral)

tire dust and I will quit there. I have lost my drivers license due to my sudden onset of laryngospasms and their severity.

Do not take any sign of latex reaction lightly and learn about latex. Do not assume that anyone that knows "all the sx of latex allergy" not one of us that has it knows ALL the sx. We know ours. Learn yours. Skin allergy (type 4) always progresses to type 1 with continued exposure to latex and it is not only in the hospital it is in 40000 items:banghead:

ShariDCST · Mar 24, 2008

i "love" doctors that ask for a positive blood test for latex allergy when 90% of dx latex allergy is history and reactions. with 250 protein and 11 currently id'ed as potential allergens - they just don't get it. someone that has had gamma gobulin treatment will not show ige under normal conditions.
on another note related to shrimp and shellfish, often when they are processed the workers wear latex gloves and cooking does not destroy latex proteins.
for all nurses make note of the following:
if you are uncongested when you get to work and congested 1 hr later--
when you take off latex gloves and begin to itch--
when you take off gloves and develop blisters--
you start haveing chest pain or breathing pain--
but when you are off duty for several days and all this goes away - think latex allergy.
i am a pain for everyone because i am allergic to neoprene, latex, all adhesives, chemical cleaning odors, formaldhyde(had to wear respirator to mothers funeral)
tire dust and i will quit there. i have lost my drivers license due to my sudden onset of laryngospasms and their severity.
do not take any sign of latex reaction lightly and learn about latex. do not assume that anyone that knows "all the sx of latex allergy" not one of us that has it knows all the sx. we know ours. learn yours. skin allergy (type 4) always progresses to type 1 with continued exposure to latex and it is not only in the hospital it is in 40000 items:banghead:

ok - this caught my attention because you mentioned several seemingly unrelated items that i have developed significant sesitivities to over the last several years. back in "another life" i worked in a very nice restaurant kitchen as a prep cook, and found that the first time i began portioning out scallops, which i had never had contact with before that i am aware of, the juice got on my arms above the level of my food handler's (non-latex) gloves and my arms broke out in a red, patchy, itchy rash almost immediately.

now, i was raised on the east coast, right on/almost in the chesapeake bay, and fresh seafood was a basic part of everyday life. i never had, nor do i now, have any issues with any other seafood item that i care to eat, including shrimp, lobster, crab, oysters, clams and any kind of fin fish. scallops seem to be the only culprit.

until i started working a different job several years ago, part of which involved opening, emptying and breaking down a large quantity of cardboard boxes containing iv and pour fluids sealed with some kind of adhesive that is dry and hard and brittle when it sets. my arms once again broke out in red, patchy, itchy rashes everytime i was required to do that. wearing long sleeves didn't help. i also react to bandaids, tapes, ekg pads and any other kind of adhesive that comes into contact with my skin. but - as far as i know, and this is because i'm a cst and wear them on a daily basis, i am not allergic to latex gloves, or balloons, underwear elastic, or anything else that could be dermal-related. (antibiotics are another story - i just had to add another one to the list, making five of the most common that i now cannot take.) does this indicate some connection with latex that might leap up to knock me over later on? i've never had issues with iodine, or mri contrasts, or anything else related to that i am aware of. are these things related? or are they just a random list of things that i just happen to be sensitive to? anybody have any ideas? i know diagnosing and medical advice here is a no-no, but i'm looking for anecdotal information that might give me an idea of which way i need to go, and what to look forward to later.

Dragonnurse1, ASN, RN · Mar 24, 2008

Have you heard about Multi-chemical sensitivity:confused:(often simply called MCS)? Make a list of everything that causes you to react to and all the antibiotics that you are allergic to and go to a really good Dermatoligist. If you are lucky and you have a Dr. that believes in MCS he may be able to corralate the reactions. You said in your post that you have added another antibiotic to your no-no list. This proves that your intolerance for antibiotics is advancing and your reaction to chemicals in your daily life can also grow.

I had never been allergic to anything even poison ivy. My Dad and I used to pull it up by the roots bare-handed until one day (after I had become a nurse) I pulled some poison ivy and had a reaction. I landed in the hospital ER, my ER where I worked; epi, benadryl and steroids. My first reaction was so bad that the Dr. told me that I must never touch the stuff again because the next reaction might put me on a vent. Add an allergic reaction to neoprene and a dx. of latex sensitivity and I was a walking time bomb. I went off March 12, 2003.:stone

How well can you eat bananas, canteloupe, tomatos, potatos? I am southern born and southern bred, that means that tomatos and canteloupe were foods that I grew up on and love. My last canteloupe was in 2005 - i itched for 48hrs non-stop even my eyes itched. :crying2:

Avoid adhesives as much as possible as each exposure tends to be a little worse than the last:nono: Make that list and find an up to date Dr. and follow up with your reactions:confused:

Hope you figure out your trigger. Good luck

ShariDCST · Mar 24, 2008

have you heard about multi-chemical sensitivity:confused:(often simply called mcs)? make a list of everything that causes you to react to and all the antibiotics that you are allergic to and go to a really good dermatoligist. if you are lucky and you have a dr. that believes in mcs he may be able to corralate the reactions. you said in your post that you have added another antibiotic to your no-no list. this proves that your intolerance for antibiotics is advancing and your reaction to chemicals in your daily life can also grow.
i had never been allergic to anything even poison ivy. my dad and i used to pull it up by the roots bare-handed until one day (after i had become a nurse) i pulled some poison ivy and had a reaction. i landed in the hospital er, my er where i worked; epi, benadryl and steroids. my first reaction was so bad that the dr. told me that i must never touch the stuff again because the next reaction might put me on a vent. add an allergic reaction to neoprene and a dx. of latex sensitivity and i was a walking time bomb. i went off march 12, 2003.:stone
how well can you eat bananas, canteloupe, tomatos, potatos? i am southern born and southern bred, that means that tomatos and canteloupe were foods that i grew up on and love. my last canteloupe was in 2005 - i itched for 48hrs non-stop even my eyes itched.
avoid adhesives as much as possible as each exposure tends to be a little worse than the last:nono: make that list and find an up to date dr. and follow up with your reactions:confused:
hope you figure out your trigger. good luck

no - i hadn't heard of that until now! thanks for letting me know about it. i have never had any reaction whatsoever to poison ivy and the like - and i know i should have! but nothing so far........

i, too, am from the south, and the foods you mentioned cause me no issues at all. i didn't care for tomatoes much when i was a kid, and don't eat them often now, but more than i did then. the melon thing i couldn't get into either - except for the "water" variety! love me some good cold watermelon on a hot summer day - with a light sprinkle of salt........ :up:

as for the rest, i have been allergic to penincillin since high school, rapidly followed by sulfa, keflex and e-mycin. now i have had to add doxycycline to that list - i had it prescribed recently for a (potential) respiratory infection that was getting worse, but turned out not to be pneumonia, but by the third day on it, i was getting red, raised, itchy, almost scaly-looking patches on odd places here and there. i stopped taking it, and they started to fade some, but haven't retreated completely, and it's now been two weeks. :uhoh3:

i will investigate the dermatologists in the area, and see if i can come up with someone who can help me. right now i'm dealing with healing/rehabbing a torn right rotator cuff, after 2 surgeries 6 months apart, and nine months from first injury. it's sort of taken precedence over everything else lately! :banghead:

thanks so much for the good information, and i'm glad to see that you have managed to remain amongst the living! living like that "time bomb" you mentioned must be somewhat nervewracking, to say the least!

Dragonnurse1, ASN, RN · Mar 25, 2008

watermelon and salt - just my cup of tea.:heartbeat Hope you find a good MD. Good luck with your shoulder.

BeeSunnyRN · Apr 8, 2008

With all respect to your anesthesia group, as a nurse and sometimes patient with a latex allergy I understand it is difficult to get a straight answer from some patients. I also understand how uncomfortable it can be to try to 'convince' care-givers that I really know what I'm allergic to.

I do not react positively to blood allergy tests. However I do react to challenge tests. If I have one more care-giver tell me it will all be ok because they aren't going to touch me with the latex gloves I think I'll scream. I don't have a contact allergy. I have anaphylactic reactions to airborne latex particles that float around when the staff is using latex gloves anywhere near me. I do not have asthma, rarely wheeze, instead I tend to just have some minor itching around my nose, lips, as it progresses my tongue and ears itch. All the while my blood pressure and O2 sat. is getting lower and lower. It is hard for me to judge for myself during a reaction but I have also gotten to the point of having a decreased LOC. For obvious reasons I don't know if that happens each time.

Your questions about underwear is valid as long as it is asked with respect. Personally, underwear can cause irritation to me if I'm hot, or the elastic is exposed. I try to buy the panties with covered elastic and such. I am more likely to react to things that I can smell such as athletic shoe stores or rubber tires in the auto dept. or bike stores. I just simply avoid all those areas as much as possible. Unfortunately most gyms are off limits to me with all the rubber mats, balls, and even handles on the equipment, I just start itching and feel SOB.

The idea of checking a spina bifida web site is the best! Large numbers of children with spina bifida have latex allergies. There are many foods that are similar in the protein structure to latex. Not all of us react to the same foods but most people with latex allergies are reactive to the top offenders such as kiwi, advocado, & banana. People known to be allergic to these foods should be assumed to also have latex sensitivities until proved otherwise.

As to the question about protein- any allergy is the bodie's reaction to a protein in a given substance so the doctor was partially correct. I'm not an expert but off the top of my head I'd guess there are proteins in both shellfish as well as iodine or people wouldn't have those allergies.

Please understand this is a very scary allergy. One because natural rubber/latex is EVERYWHERE, two because my experience tells me there are a lot of misconceptions and that people don't always take me seriously or listen to what I tell them I have previously reacted to.

A little compassion and a little listening (which I know is hard to have the time to do) as well as a lot of vigilance will go a long way towards reassuring your fellow staff members as well as your patients.

be safe!

Dragonnurse1, ASN, RN · Apr 8, 2008

Yah Beesunny RN Thank you if enough of us keep yelling at the wind someone will finally hear us. I had to give up my job because of latex allergy but I can eat shellfish but give my a canteloupe and I will be in the hospital and that is the last place I want to go,.

I was an ER nurse. 9+ years. I recommend to anyone with latex issues to go to Yahoo groups and look up LAforum. A group that had about 40 members in 2004 and now over 200 and climbing. There are people from all around the world, England, New south Wales, Australia, to name a few. Some are still early just diagnosed and some have had the allergy 10+ years. They have extensive libraries of crossreactives, links to other sites but non to help us the latex challenged to make the world understand.

When i was last in the hospital my husband made a no latex sign for my door and the first person in my RN wearing latex gloves asked me what does that mean? If I had not been on a continous racemic updraft at the moment I would have screamed. My hubby also medical (surgical scrub) informed her to follow him out of the room and I heard some very serious explaining being done.

Then I got the dreaded residents - their attending does not believe not believe in latex allergies. Yeah and I am the easter bunny. Now I carry a self made "How to take care of the latex allergic patient" I included the multi-chemicaled challenged as I have progressed past just the "latex" part. I have now added many other chemicals airborne and otherwise. I have to wear a respirator to go shopping. :down:

My most embaressing moment to date was my reaction at my own mothers viewing. I pre medicated (100 benadryl and 40 pepcid) but I did not know that the embalming room was above the viewing areas and I have a very bad allergy to formaldhyde (it arrived before the latex reactions started). I had to leave her viewing and a the funeral I had to wear my respirator just to be at the service. Now that just ................ :bluecry1:

Keep up the fight it is all any of us can do. :banghead:

Stay safe - check out LAForum support groups lists - there are some with alternatives for every day items that cause us problems.

stay cool:smokin: