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Date: | Thu, 25 Jan 2001 18:07:59 -0500 |
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The January 8 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine has an article that
estimates the number of Americans at risk for Anaphylaxis is substantially
higher than previously estimated. Anaphylaxis is a severe, life-threatening
allergic reaction to insect stings, some foods, latex, and other irritants.
You can read a synopsis of the article on-line at
http://archinte.ama-assn.org/issues/v161n1/abs/ira00008.html
The authors estimate that 1.36 to 13.6 million Americans are at risk of
anaphylaxis from insect stings. Their findings are based on reviews of
published papers. I am not a doctor and am not qualified to critique the
paper, but it is a rather dramatic departure from the few sources I am
familiar with, such as the chapter on allergic reactions in "The Hive and the
Honeybee." The authors recommend that doctors discuss the issue with high-
risk patients, but the information I have at hand suggests that there is no
effective way to identify high-risk patients in advance.
The complete article is available on-line to AMA members. Perhaps some
appropriately qualified beekeepers will be kind enough to review the full
article and critique it for the list.
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