Guidelines
Guidelines covering the management of anaphylaxis generally recommend adrenaline as immediate first-line treatment (if this stage of treatment is covered).
Doses of adrenaline, where recommended, reflect what is considered to be safe and practical for healthcare providers to draw up and inject in a clinical setting, 25 while auto-injectors are recommended primarily for use by lay people for self-administration and so warrant a more conservative approach. For example, the Resuscitation Council UK recommend 0.5 mg IM in adults, but this does not apply to patients and carers using adrenaline auto-injectors, nor for rescuers, where the use of an auto-injector (0.3 mg or 0.15 mg) is recommended when no other adrenaline for IM administration is available.
Summaries of the key guidelines relevant to the UK can be accessed by selecting the appropriate tab below.
- 25 - Resuscitation Council (UK) Guidelines. January 2008. Available at: www.resus.org.uk/pages/reaction.pdf Accessed on 03 June 2011.