oh crap she's tested positive to peanut...

[girlsyearapart]

well, we had more skin pricks today and dd2 18mo has tested positive for allergies to peanut and sesame.

We were told that as she weighs 9kg she can't have an epipen until she reaches 13kg.

If she has a reaction we have to do piriton, wait, 999 and more piriton. Doesn't seem right to me??

We were given a junior epipen when our DD was 11 months, and no where near 13kg, the consultants reasoning being that it would be more dangerous for her NOT to have one, than the possible effects of too much adrenaline. Junior epipens are not licenced for under this weight, though it is certainly possible to have them prescribed.

I suppose it might depend on the severity of your DDs allergy, though I know I would rather have one, than not as you never know what he strength of a subsequent reaction might be. Ask for them anyway!

we were told there were exceptions.. she has never been exposed to peanut but has reacted badly to a few bites of cracker with sesame seeds on (hives,welts.blotches)

So she had a 9mm positive on the skin prick but has never actually been exposed to it iyswim.

Apparently the gp can prescribe a pen if they think it's necessary.

Have you ever had to use your pen?

Girlsyearapart- I don't know anything useful to you about epipens, just wanted to say I'm so sorry to hear this news.
Got our test for dd2 in may.

She has multiple allergies, and I suppose the pen is a cover-all, not just for peanut as she is also anaphylactic to cows'milk and probably egg (along with a scutch of other severe reactions to legumes and tree nuts...).

Thankfully, I have never had to use it on her yet, though looking back, there are two occasions when I probablly should have, but paniced and OD'd her on piriton whilst rushing to A&E to let them deal with it

She is only three, though, and I have a lot of control over her environment as she or my husband have, until very recently, been her sole carers. What I'm getting at is, if your DD is in nursery or regularly has someone else looking after her, I would INSIST on being prescribed epipens and that they were given the relevant training. Even if it's just for your peace of mind.

Actually, the more I think about this, the mose cross I am for you! It's hard enough for parents of allergic children to retain a sense of normality towards food, without being on edge in every situation outside of their own houses. Although I don't want to teach my daughter to underestimate the seriousness of her allergies, I also don't want her to be terrified of food.
Allergies, even serious, potentially fatal ones, are manageable with medication. And having that medication nearby at all times is essential for a normal life.
They should have just given you epipens, not just left you to worry about what if...?!

Rant over, sorry!

it's scary because at that wheal size she probably does have nut allergy (quite a few kids with tests below 8mm don't react when fed peanut). BUT young children may vomit either on eating an allergen or on being given piriton. As long as she isn't asthmatic she probably isn't going to need an epipen yet even if she has a reaction. She will need one later and I wouldn't plan on going on any flights without one.

If she had a reaction I would give piriton but then head for A&E not sit around wondering. Any sign of a breathing problem or going limp and you call an ambulance.

If she is regularly staying with other people/ you live a long way from a hospital or she starts nursery then I would press for an epipen.

Not sure with what being asthmatic has to do with anaphylaxis? My DD isn't... and piriton has never made her vomit, but reactions have...

Regardless, what is the problem with being given an epipen? - if you need it, you use it, if you don't, you don't! The thing is, we ALL know that no allergy testing is going to tell you 100 percent what the outcome of reaction is going to be, but the whole point is that it gives an indication.

I suppose what is really annoying me is that there is such disparity of information, care and support amongst health care professionals.

I don't think you should have to take such a gamble with your child's life.

I thought they wouldn't do allergy tests before 2 years old?

Both my kids were allergy tested at around 6 months wingedvictory.

girlsyearapart we were told the same, DS could only be prescribed an epipen if he was over a certain weight or had asthma or had already had an anyphlactic reaction (catch 22!!!).

It also freaked me out as his lips and tongue had swelled on exposure to sesame. He has now outgrown most of has allergies apart from egg and dairy thankfully.

It seems strange that the criteria seem to differ depending on who you see whether an epipen is prescribed. i would have been much happier with one.

thanks everyone.
She is 18mo and I'm a SAHM so she is mainly with me.

The reaction to sesame was to less than half a cracker with sesame seeds on and resulted in her being covered in wheals,welts,hives,blotches, being very itchy and unhappy.

She has never had nuts as we have been aware she is atopic for most of her life so have been careful (it was dd1 who gave her the cracker in the back of the car~)

I just think it's a bit rubbish that we have to wait till she has a more dramatic reaction before they will do something more conclusive.

Piriton isn't a problem she has been having it on and off for over a year now and never vomited with it.

One reaction so far has caused swelling - one eye shut and round the mouth but we are not 100% what she ate.

Would rather be able to do something about an anaphylactic reaction than wait for one to happen, plus with dc3 arriving in 20 weeks my mind will not be on the job as much and she will inevitably be with other people more...

whelk fingers crossed for May

Winged Victory - where are you that they won't tst until 2 years old, that's terrible?! My DD was initially tested at 10 weeks old, and DC2 (due this week - eek!) will be tested at the end of april.

children who have asthma are more at risk from an anaphylactic reaction, so you need help faster. No child under 13 is recorded as having died from an anaphylactic reaction to peanut but some have died from asthma where an allergic reaction was involved. That's why they give epipens more readily to children with asthma.

OP if every time your child has a reaction you call an ambulance they will soon decide it is cheaper to give you an epipen, even if your child is a bit light for it. Teling your gp you feel you will have to call an ambulance for any reaction but that if you had an epipen you could wait and see might get you an epipen.

spoke to gp today who thought it was a bit daft that we had been told to wait until 13kg and we are to make an appointment for a weeks time to get an epipen!

yey!

good for you - and your gp.

We got an epipen for ds2's dairy allergy and he is 22 months and nowhere near 13 kg (about 9.4 at present).

I do know asthma is a sign of a probable stronger allergic reaction affecting airways, but just because your dd does not have asthma does not mean an epipen should not be prescribed.

Do you have a consultant allergist rather than just a general paed?

We have seen dietitian, dermatologist, normal paed, skin specialist but not an allergist. Apt next thurs hoping they carry through decision to prescribe us the pen.

Our pharmacist has given us a free invite thing for the allergy show at olympia at the end of may- anyone else going?

Hi, sorry for my silence. We are in SE London, and the GPs have taken a rather softly-softly approach to DS's eczema, one of them saying that she would urge me to try other means before starting to mess about with diet, as we could end up on a restrictive regime for years when it wasn't necessary as moisturising and hydrocortisone could have controlled it much less distruptively. To be honest, I was relieved to hear her say that, as controlling diet seems a very extreme solution, when his eczema comes and goes! Also, I gather there are certain sensitivities they can grow out of: DS had a reaction to crab cake while abroad this summer, and the doctor (in between prescribing antihistamie shots into his derriere) told us he would not necessarily be sensitive to it all his life.

On the diet manipulation front, we did try goat's milk recently, and his skin seemed to get worse, so we are back to cow's milk to "re-set" everything, and I'll re-try goat's milk at a later point, in case something else is going on at the moment. But that underlines for me that controlling diet is a very complex task, and misunderstandings can arise out of coincidences. Probably best to just go and have an allergy test!

Sorry for thread hi-jack! Hope you are all well.

Sorry to hear this Girslyearapart.

My daughter is 2 and a half and was diagnosed with a nut allergy at 15 months. Our local health authority has a policy of only giving epipens to children with asthma. We are having her retested next month and will discuss it again with them.

There is a belief amongst our health professionals that there are too many epipens out there (their words not mine) They will give them to children with asthma and to children who may be travelling/visiting other countries where they may not be able to control their diet as well or be as close to good medical care.

It is a Catch 22 because the only reaction my child has had so far is hives. She hasn't had any subsequent reactions because we are really careful to make sure she doesn't eat anything liable to contain traces or be contaminated. But they readily admit that just because she has had this "mild" reaction it doesn't mean that she won't get a stronger reaction next time. So what if something slips through the net and she DOES have an anaphylatic reaction? It crosses my mind and I think I probably would be happier with an epipen.

I suppose it becomes more of an issue when I am leaving her in the care of others. At the moment I am able to be with her all the time as a SAHM.

Are they going to re-test her on an annual basis? That's what they are doing with my daughter at least until she is 6 anyway.

thanks glasjam it's all such a worry isn't it?

I'm hoping the gp goes through on the decision to prescribe the epipen when we go on Thursday. I don't really like the advice of 'piriton/ambulance/piriton' in case I'm somewhere I can't call 999 (unlikely really but still)

Encouraging though that you have managed to avoid contact for over a year though.

We are having more blood tests in 6 months when she is 2 to test for other nuts and we are waiting for an appointment for her to have the egg challenge in hospital.

Hi Girls, sorry you are going through this, how stressy for you all.

Hey BlueBumed...contact me via PeanutAllergy.co.uk

Thanks bbf how's things your end?

Mrs C - will do

Girls - not too bad thanks, SDD's IgE down from 465 to 95 so progress indeed. Her wheal reaction at skin prick down from 14mm to 4mm. So, all doing in the right direction. DD3 has a raw egg allergy and I know nothing about eggs so will have to post her and get some advice.

good news bbf.

We have gone down in the egg allergy stakes apparently and are set for an egg challenge soon as down to nothing for egg white and 5mm for yolk so they think cooked egg may be ok.

Picked up the epipen today...