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How to manage your child’s
Anaphylactic Reactions
What is an
anaphylactic reaction?
An anaphylactic reaction, or anaphylaxis, is a severe allergic reaction. Symptoms can start very quickly and it could be life-threatening.
Anaphylaxis is caused by an allergen that triggers an immune response in the body. This is your body’s way of trying to protect itself. Common allergens include food, some insects (like bees or wasps), and medications.
Symptoms
Children can have different reactions and symptoms to different types of allergens.
Anaphylaxis can affect different areas of the body.
Symptoms of anaphylaxis may be different in babies. You may notice your baby cries more or is very tired (lethargic).
Your baby may also have some of the symptoms listed above.
What to do if your child
is having an anaphylactic reaction?
Keep your child lying down unless they are short-of-breath or vomiting
Click the icon to view
With ephinephrine
Without ephinephrine
If you have an epinephrine autoinjector, give your child the epinephrine autoinjector and seek emergency care by either calling 911 or going to the emergency department
EpiPen®
Remember: Blue to the sky, orange to the thigh
Allerject®
Remember: Remove red safety guard, press black end to the thigh
Emerade™
Remember: Remove the lid, press pen into the thigh
Epinephrine autoinjectors expire. Be sure to keep your child’s ephinephrine prescription updated.
Treatment
An anaphylactic reaction is treated with epinephrine, also known as adrenaline. Epinephrine is a medication that can reverse the effects of an anaphylactic reaction. It works quickly but it is not long lasting.
Epinephrine is available in Canada as the EpiPen®, Allerject®, and Emerade™. To learn how to use your child’s epinephrine autoinjectors, click the links below:
Always take your child to the hospital after an anaphylactic reaction, even if they feel better with epinephrine.
It is important for your child to be monitored for rebound reactions. A rebound reaction is when symptoms of anaphylaxis come back after treatment, usually within 3-24 hours. It happens about 15% of the time, and is more common if the reaction was severe or if treatment took a long time.
It may take a few days for your child to feel 100% better after an anaphylactic reaction.
If your child has another anaphylactic reaction, give them epinephrine immediately and go to your nearest emergency department
Follow up with your child’s doctor or allergist after they have had an anaphylactic reaction and needed epinephrine.
Diagnosis
Your child may be referred to see an allergist, a doctor that specializes in allergies. They can use tests that help find out what caused your child’s anaphylactic reaction, and how strong the reaction was. These tests will help your allergist come up with an action plan that works for you and your child.
Action Plan
It is important for you and your child to learn how to recognize and manage the symptoms of anaphylaxis.
Work with your doctor to create a personalized action plan to keep track of your child’s allergens, epinephrine expiry date, and the number of epinephrine autoinjectors they will need.
Prevent anaphylactic reactions by
- Removing allergens from your home
- Knowing how to recognize and manage symptoms
- Talking to your child’s school and care-providers about their anaphylaxis and how to keep them safe
- Making sure that epinephrine is always available to your child’s care providers, including families, schools, and daycares
- Making sure care providers are familiar with how to use your child’s epinephrine autoinjectors
It’s important to teach your child:
- How to avoid allergens
- To always have their epinephrine with them
- What to do if they are having an anaphylactic reaction, and
- To wear a medical identification bracelet that lists what they are allergic to
Useful links
Food Allergy
Canada
My health – Alberta
Anaphylactic Reaction
TREKK – Anaphylaxis
Resources for Kids
Contact Us
echokt@ualberta.ca
www.echokt.ca
This research was funded by
the Canadian Institutes of Health Research
