How to Use an Epipen

Speaker: Epipen. Who should be a candidate for EpiPen? Speaker2: EpiPen is a device which administers epinephrine adrenaline in a subcutaneous fashion. By putting this pen like device against the skin, a needle will very quickly inject into the skin a small dose of epinephrine. Epinephrine is a rescue medication for patients who have Anaphylaxis. That is a severe allergic reaction, which affects their breathing, their heart rate and blood pressure, or both. Patients who are candidates for an EpiPen, is any patient who has had one episode of this type of severe reaction. We do not give EpiPens merely for children who have a history of a food allergy, or who develops highs from a food allergy. But if they develop a more serious systemic reaction, which affects breathing, or a heart rate, or blood pressure, then EpiPens can be given for that patient. Speaker: One of the nurses in a school, I won't mention names obviously, one of the sibling of a kid, with a severe peanut allergy, have an epipen in school. Does that makes sense to you? Speaker2: There is no indication to have an EpiPen for a sibling. The risk of developing allergies in general certainly does run in families, but the type of allergy and the severity of the allergy is very individual to the patient, and so if this patient had never had a serious allergic reaction before, there is no indication for that patient to have an EpiPen on this person. Speaker: I have had parents who ask me, can I send the kid to a lab, and see if my kid peanut allergy before I give the kid peanuts. That makes sense? Speaker2: You cannot develop an allergy to a food that you have never been exposed to. You always have to have some exposure before an allergic reactions develops, and it's very common that patients will have had peanuts for a period of time before they developed their first peanut reaction. And so a blood test in a child who has never been exposed or who has never had a reaction before, would not be predictive at all, of whether future exposure would cause an allergic reactions to develop. Speaker: If the kid was having a history or potentially anaphylactic reaction in the past, starts to get some symptoms at school, giving the epipen early makes more sense than later. Is that true? Speaker2: If the patient has had a history of anaphylactic reaction in the past, and they are starting to have even the mildest symptoms, using the epipen at the earliest of point of time will clearly prevent those symptoms from worsening into a more serious event, so use it early if you suspect that a reaction is occurring, if the history has been there. Speaker: Delay could be fatal to him? Speaker2: It absolutely can be fatal. The other thing to remember is EpiPen is an emergency rescue medication, it's not a final treatment. The medication in EpiPen wears off in about 20 minutes, and at that point of time, the reaction can start up well over again. So once an EpiPen is given, it buys you time to then get your child or yourself to a medical facility, to continue therapy if necessary. Speaker: And if you call 911, and they don't get to you with that period of time, it's good to have a second one, just in case. Speaker2: Yes, we should always have a second EpiPen available. It's routine for patients to have two ,so that if the first one doesn't work well enough, misfires, or just starts to wear off, there is a backup in place. Speaker: And they should be careful about the date, because it wears off pretty quickly. Is that true? Speaker2: Yeah, the expiration date on EpiPen is generally about 6 months, and so you need to keep track of the expiration date, and renew your prescription when your expiration date comes through. Speaker: And the rule of thumb is, if you think this has got enough allergic reaction, do not wait, do not delay. If you are not sure, make sure the pediatrician on your private care position shows you how to use it. It's not difficult, but the tremendous fear that first you have, and if you do it once, it's not a big deal. Speaker2: Absolutely, the fear of using at the first time is much greater than the reality. Worst case scenarios is, if they use it a little too early, you will get a little shaky, you might get a little nauseous, it wears off in 20 minutes. The benefit is that you may have protected against a potentially life threatening reaction. Speaker: And we know that it has saved many, many lives because it has reversible processes. Is that true? Speaker2: Without question.