One of the most serious life-threatening reactions is what doctors call anaphylactic shock. Unfortunately, most cases of anaphylactic shock occur without warning and are in fact completely unexpected and have a high mortality rate if urgent emergency treatment is not performed.
In this article, we want to get you familiar with the clinical manifestations and in fact the symptoms of anaphylactic shock.
what you will read next :
Why does anaphylactic shock occur?
Doctors call the factor that causes allergic reactions in the body allergens.
Doctors have identified food allergens, insect bites, such as bee stings, and medications as the most common allergens involved.
In short, anaphylactic shock is the result of a reaction to a specific allergen in the body. As a result of this very large immune response, different systems of the body will be involved. Including:
- Cardiovascular system
- Nervous system
- Respiratory system and lungs
- Skin symptoms
Doctors say that during anaphylactic shock, a group of immune system cells called mast cells and basophils are highly active.
Symptoms of anaphylactic shock
The most common symptoms of anaphylactic shock are:
- Skin symptoms (ninety percent)
- Respiratory symptoms (seventy percent)
What factors can trigger the onset of anaphylaxis?
- Insect venom and bites:
Hymenoptera insects, such as fire ants, bees, wild bees, are said to cause this reaction.
- Food allergens:
- peanut
- egg
- Lion
- Food additives
- Sesame
- fish
- shrimp
- Edible seeds
- Radiology contrast material
- Latex
- Dandruff in animals
- Perform allergy tests
- Following immunotherapeutic tests such as vaccination
- Medicines:
- Allopurinol
- Captopril
- Co amoxiclav
- ASA
- Interferons
- Opioids, morphine
- Ibuprofen, naproxen and their families (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or NSAIDs)
- In rare cases, environmental and physical stimuli such as:
- the cold
- the heat
- Sun light
- Sport
Note that sometimes no specific cause is found for anaphylactic shock. In these cases, doctors refer to this condition as idiopathic anaphylaxis. These often have either unknown allergens or a very high increase in the number of immune system mast cells called mastocytosis.
Symptoms of anaphylactic shock
Let us now turn to a review of the clinical signs and manifestations of anaphylactic shock.
We mentioned above that different systems of the body are involved in anaphylactic shock, so we will review the symptoms separately in the systems involved in anaphylactic shock.
Before that, it is necessary to know that the term shock is used by doctors in a situation where, for some reason, the arteries of a person’s body dilate progressively, which leads to a decrease in blood pressure and insufficient blood supply to the organs of the body and problems.
Symptoms of anaphylactic shock in different systems of the body
Skin and mucous membranes (90%)
Eyes: red and swollen, congestion and swelling of the eyelids, tears
Mouth: lips and tongue become very swollen
On the skin of the body: urticaria, flushing, eract of hair follicles on the surface of the body, morbilliform rashes and itchy skin
- Respiratory system (70%):
- Sore throat
- Dry cough
- Difficult breathing
- Difficulty swallowing
- Difficulty speaking due to swelling and edema of the vocal cords and obstruction of the airways at the level of the larynx
- Change voice
- Cyanosis or darkening of the lips and mucous membranes inside the mouth
- Wheezing when breathing
- Feeling of tightness in the chest
- Increase the number of breaths or tachypnea
- Finally, insufficient oxygen delivery and cardiac arrest
- Cardiovascular system:
In the first phase of anaphylactic shock:
- Increased heart rate or tachycardia
- Low blood pressure
- Intense sweating
In the advanced phase:
- Decreased heart rate or bradycardia
- Cyanosis or darkening of the lips and mucous membranes inside the mouth
- And finally cardiac arrest and death
- Nervous system:
- Pulsating headaches
- Vertigo
- Lightheadedness
- Agitated
- Confusion
- Tunnel Vision
- Decreased level of consciousness
- Digestive system:
- Nausea
- Vomit
- Abdominal cramps
- Diarrhea
General and general symptoms:
Generally, in anaphylactic shock, the following symptoms may also occur:
- Anxiety
- Bad taste in the mouth, the taste of iron in the mouth
- Numbness in the hands or feet
- Fatigue
- Weakness
- Decreased muscle strength, especially in children
- New and sudden behavioral changes
- Be irritable
- In children, stop playing and normal childish activities
What criteria do doctors use to diagnose anaphylactic shock?
The presence of any of the following three categories makes the diagnosis of anaphylactic shock possible.
one
Sudden onset of a skin rash
For example, within a few minutes to a few hours, urticaria, flushing, itching, swelling of the lips and tongue, plus at least one of the following:
- Respiratory failure
- Decreased blood pressure or symptoms of organ failure due to hypotension and insufficient blood supply to them. For example, the occurrence of syncope
- Urinary incontinence
- And hypotony or muscle relaxation
Two
Exposure to potential allergens and the occurrence of at least two of the following within minutes to hours:
- Skin and mucous membrane involvement
- Respiratory failure
- Decreased blood pressure or symptoms of secondary organ failure due to hypotension
- Stable gastrointestinal symptoms
Three
Exposure to known allergens and the occurrence of hypotension within minutes to hours:
In infants and children:
Systolic pressure based on the age of the child is low
Reduction of more than 30% of normal systolic blood pressure based on the age of the child
It is said that in children with hypotension, the criteria based on age will be as follows:
- Children from one month to twelve months:
Systolic blood pressure less than 70mmHg should be considered a blood pressure drop
- Children one to ten years old:
Systolic blood pressure less than 70mmHg, plus twice the age of the child, should be considered a drop in blood pressure.
- Children and adolescents from eleven to seventeen years old:
Systolic blood pressure less than 90mmHg should be considered a drop in blood pressure.
In adults:
- Systolic blood pressure lower than ninety millimeters of mercury
- Reduction of systolic pressure by more than 30%
Physicians generally believe that anaphylactic shock is more likely to occur if symptoms occur within one hour of exposure to the allergen. In many parts of the world today, people with anaphylactic shock are prescribed the epinephrine pen to be with them at all times and they are also taught how to use this tool.
In the emergency room, hypotension due to anaphylactic shock must be corrected before vital organs and organs fail due to insufficient blood supply to the organs and intramuscular epinephrine should be injected before respiratory and cardiovascular failure.
The final word
It is said that the use of laboratory tests in the diagnosis of anaphylactic shock is not possible due to time consuming and out of reach and is not recommended, the priority is to start treatment quickly to compensate for progressive hypotension, which saves the patient’s life.
Antihistamines and corticosteroids are also adjunctive treatment associated with the main treatment, which is epinephrine injection.
If your loved ones have suffered from anaphylactic shock, take them to the emergency room as soon as possible, there is a short time to save the patient’s life that should not be wasted.