Children with reported penicillin allergy: Public health impact and safety of delabeling.

OBJECTIVE

To review the relevant literature related to children with reported penicillin allergy and highlight the different ways in which children could be delabeled and to evaluate the public health impact that a penicillin allergy has for children.

DATA SOURCES: Data for this review were obtained via PubMed searches and then retrieval of articles from their respective journals for further review.

STUDY SELECTIONS: Studies regarding the safety of different ways to evaluate penicillin allergy in children were identified via PubMed searches. Any study that reported different ways of testing (3-tier, direct oral challenge, 5-day oral challenges) were included. This same format was used when selecting relevant articg:les related to the costs, prescription patterns, and stewardship trends associated with a penicillin allergy label.

RESULTS

This review found that penicillin allergy testing is a safe and effective way to delabel those with reported allergy. In children with low-risk allergy symptoms, a direct oral challenge approach may be optimal. In those children with a history of high-risk allergy symptoms, a 3-tiered approach is ideal. The review also found that there is a significant cost associated with reported penicillin allergy and that there are increased negative health benefits to those children with reported allergy.

CONCLUSION

Penicillin allergy is overdiagnosed, often incorrectly, and the label is frequently first applied during childhood. Targeting children for the removal of the incorrect penicillin allergy label provides a mechanism to reduce the use of broader-spectrum and less effective antibiotics.