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Allergy is a disease that develops very dynamically. Unfortunately, the incidence of the most dangerous form of allergy, anaphylaxis, is also increasing. Anaphylactic shock is very serious and can be fatal, therefore everyone, not only allergy sufferers, should know how to react when it occurs [1]. [2]
Allergy sufferers should know the consequences of a severe allergic reaction, and everyone else should know how to help them in an anaphylactic shock situation, which can even lead to death.
Allergy sufferers are in every home
At the beginning of 2014, MedTvoiLokony as part of the Prepare for a Shock campaign! conducted an internet survey on anaphylactic shock. Now, almost a year later, the poll was repeated – to see whether the knowledge of Poles on this subject is growing or declining.
About 50 percent of the participants in both studies were allergy sufferers. Among the remaining respondents, there were many people who had close contact with allergic reactions – these were the relatives of allergy sufferers and those taking care of them. 1/4 of participants in both polls did not suffer from allergies or had close contact with allergy sufferers. Looking at these numbers, one can get the impression that the Internet polls interested only a small group of people suffering from allergies or living with allergies on a daily basis. It’s not true. The percentage of allergy sufferers participating in both surveys only slightly exceeds their number in the entire population. The forecasts of the European Academy of Allergology and Clinical Immunology show that in the next decade more than half of the population of our continent will be affected by some type of allergy. So today, statistically, at least one allergy sufferer lives in every home.
The knowledge of the shock is growing
As many as 70 percent of the participants in the first survey did not know what anaphylactic shock, i.e. a life-threatening, very violent reaction of the body to an allergen, for example after eating peanuts, was. In the second poll, conducted at the end of 2014, awareness of what an anaphylactic shock is was much greater. Almost 65 percent of the study participants were able to correctly identify symptoms such as narrowing of the airways causing shortness of breath, and a drop in blood pressure. The greatest knowledge was shown not by the allergy sufferers themselves, but by their caregivers (as much as 73 percent of correct answers). The number of correct answers was 20 percent higher among women than among men. The group aged 25-39 and residents of large and medium-sized cities fared best.
This knowledge deserves recognition, as the vast majority of participants in both probes know anaphylactic shock, fortunately only in theory – even among allergy sufferers answering the questions prepared by MedTvoiLokony, only one in five has experienced this violent, dangerous reaction personally. In the remaining groups, less than 10 percent of people survived the shock. Few of the participants in the last poll (12 percent) witnessed such a shock. In the first poll, carried out at the beginning of 2014, more than 16 percent of respondents said about a shock seen with their own eyes.
We want to learn first aid
The number of people who know how to behave when witnessing an anaphylactic shock is also increasing – albeit at a slower pace. Among those who would decide to help, the vast majority (around 80 percent of respondents) would call an ambulance service. Almost half would also like to administer an anti-shock preparation for self-use. Anyone aware of their severe allergy should always have with them a preparation containing adrenaline, in a disposable pre-filled syringe, the use of which is very simple.
It is also very optimistic that over 70 percent of people taking part in both surveys declare their willingness to participate in the training, where it is possible to learn how to provide first aid to people suffering from anaphylactic shock. Young people (up to 39 years of age) from large cities would like to pass it – especially women and those who take care of allergy sufferers on a daily basis (here as many as 80 percent of respondents expressed their willingness to participate in such a training).
[1] Anaphylaxis is a severe, life-threatening, immediate hypersensitivity reaction. Hypersensitivity, on the other hand, is defined as objectively occurring, repetitive symptoms caused by exposure to an allergen in a dose well tolerated by healthy people. In other words, it is systemic (symptoms affect several systems, e.g. respiratory, circulatory, digestive and skin) or a general reaction of the body to an allergen or other factors (e.g. exercise in combination with eating a specific food before or after exercise). The most common causes of anaphylaxis are medications, food allergens, and hymenoptera stings. Anaphylaxis is characterized by a sudden onset of symptoms usually starting with skin changes (generalized erythema, wheals, persistent itching of the whole body), often with impaired airway obstruction (dyspnoea or asthma attack) and / or cardiovascular disorders (syncope, loss of consciousness). Symptoms of anaphylaxis may develop within a few, less frequently, within several dozen minutes after contact with the triggering agent. An additional complication of anaphylaxis is that it is usually unpredictable and, when it occurs, is usually rapid. Adrenaline is the only drug that can effectively combat all symptoms of anaphylaxis.
[2] Debate Report Prepare to Shock! https://media.pta.med.pl/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Raport-z-debaty-Przygotuj-się-na-wstrzą-Warszawa-styczeń-2014-r.pdf