{"id":6857,"date":"2019-11-11T10:00:52","date_gmt":"2019-11-11T15:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.singlecare.com\/blog\/?p=6857"},"modified":"2022-05-09T14:07:34","modified_gmt":"2022-05-09T18:07:34","slug":"penicillin-allergy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.singlecare.com\/blog\/penicillin-allergy\/","title":{"rendered":"Do you really have a penicillin allergy? Check again."},"content":{"rendered":"

A few days after my daughter started taking her first antibiotic, at around a year old, she broke out in a rash. I called her doctor immediately. The pediatrician\u2019s office told me to stop the medication. She\u2019s been branded with a penicillin allergy ever since.<\/span><\/p>\n

It didn\u2019t seem like a big deal at first. I like to let illnesses run their course without antibiotics, whenever possible. For a few years, she never needed a prescription. But then, she was diagnosed with an autoimmune condition and put on immunosuppressant drugs. Suddenly, she required antibiotics to kick any little illness.<\/span><\/p>\n

When you can\u2019t take penicillin<\/a>, the antibiotic options very quickly narrow. Several of those options made my daughter sick. I had to fight to get her to take them and take lots of trips to the bathroom with her after she did.<\/span><\/p>\n

When a new physician specializing in penicillin allergy joined her medical team, her pediatrician was quick to sign her up for testing.<\/span><\/p>\n

Is it a true penicillin allergy?<\/span><\/h2>\n

American Academy of Pediatrics spokesperson <\/span>John Kelso, MD,<\/span><\/a> specializes in allergies and immunology. He recently told The Checkup that while approximately 10% of children will be labeled as being allergic to penicillin, \u201cIt turns out about 95% of them are not allergic at all.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

He said this happens for several reasons:<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. It\u2019s not uncommon for children to develop a secondary rash in reaction to the initial infection <\/b>that required treatment in the first place, as opposed to developing a penicillin rash in reaction to the medication.<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. <\/b> There is something called an<\/b>\u00a0amoxicillin rash<\/b><\/a> that is a fairly common reaction to amoxicillin, but is not actually an allergic reaction, and isn\u2019t especially dangerous, according to Dr. Kelso.<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. <\/b> Some kids do have a true allergic reaction, but they outgrow it<\/b> in the years that follow.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Dr. Kelso says a lot of what is labeled as a penicillin allergy is exactly what my daughter experienced: a rash that develops a few days into treatment, occurs the first time penicillin is given, is relatively minor, and isn\u2019t hive-like in nature.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Signs of a true penicillin allergy<\/span><\/h2>\n

    He explained that a true allergic reaction doesn\u2019t typically develop the first time a medication is given. This is because, \u201ca penicillin allergy, like any allergy, requires some prior exposure. Nobody is born allergic to anything. We think you cannot develop an allergy during your first exposure to penicillin.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

    For this reason, he said a true penicillin reaction will usually:<\/span><\/p>\n