Allergies And Anaphylaxis: Analyzing The Spectrum Of Clinical Manifestations

Davis, Jonathan E. MD, FAAEM, FACEP
Howell, John M. MD, FACEP
Nelson, Bret P. MD, RDMS

¹Authors
²Associate Program Director and Assistant Professor, Department of Emergency Medicine, Georgetown University Hospital & Washington Hospital Center —Washington, DC.
³Peer Reviewers
⁴Clinical Professor of Emergency Medicine, George Washington University—Washington, DC; Director of Academic Affairs, Best Practices, Inc, Inova Fairfax Hospital—Falls Church, VA.
⁵Department of Emergency Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital and Mount Sinai School of Medicine—New York, NY.

Date of original release: October 26, 2005.

Date of most recent review: October 5, 2005.

See “Physician CME Information” on back page.

Emergency Medicine Practice 7(10):p 1-22, October 2005.

It is 7:15 on a sunny summer morning, and you are just embarking on what promises to be an enjoyable day shift in the ED. Suddenly, the medics rush through the doors with a teenage patient who is sitting upright, clutching either side of the gurney with tightly clenched fists, and gasping for breath. You immediately take note of his swollen lips, flushed skin, and diffuse, raised rash. Although the words are barely audible, you manage to catch a faint, muffled voice, rasping, “I… can't… breathe….”