Pediatric allergy and immunology : official publication of the European Society of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology
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Pediatr Allergy Immunol · Dec 2011
Review Case ReportsEducational case series: β-lactam allergy and cross-reactivity.
Penicillins and cephalosporins are the most widely used antibiotics for the treatment of common infections, and they are the two main classes of β-lactams. On the basis of the time of appearance of the reaction after drug intake and for diagnostic purposes, hypersensitivity reactions to β-lactams have been classified as immediate or non-immediate. The diagnostic evaluation of allergic reactions to β-lactams has changed over the last decade, for several reasons. ⋯ The drug provocation test is still necessary for diagnosis. In this education review series, we described three cases of β-lactam allergy: first, a child with an IgE-mediated allergy to benzyl-penicillin; second, a child with a non-allergic hypersensitivity to amoxicillin; and in the third patient, we will discuss about cross-reactivity between penicillins and cephalosporins. These cases are correlated with the practical management of evaluating β-lactam allergy.