Follow-up after anaesthetic anaphylaxis

Area of Science:

• Anesthesiology
• Allergy Immunology

Background:

• Established anaesthetic allergy clinic with a 30-year history.
• Standard practice: provide patients with an investigation results letter for future anaesthetists.

Purpose of the Study:

• Assess the adequacy of patient letters for communication.
• Quantify the effectiveness of recommendations on future anaesthesia safety.

Main Methods:

• Contacted 606 previous patients via database, phone listings, and doctors.
• Collected data on subsequent anaesthesia and information transfer.

Main Results:

• 246 patients were contactable; 183 had subsequent anaesthesia, all safely.
• Patient letters were updated with subsequent anaesthesia information in only 11 cases.
• 82 patients' letters were updated with new information to enhance drug selection safety.

Conclusions:

• Clinic testing ensures a high degree of safety in subsequent anaesthesia.
• Need for improved systems to facilitate patient anaesthetic allergy information flow after subsequent anaesthesia.