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Patients & Consumers Conditions En Español Find an Allergist / Immunologist Just for Kids New Research Parent Resources Pollen Levels Publications Real Life Stories Request a Speaker School Tools Seniors The Virtual Allergist™ Treatments Search by Condition (A-Z) Search by Topic Allergy & Asthma Issues Educational Brochures Elements of Allergy and Asthma Order Public Education Materials Washington Post Supplement Allergy Shots Drug Guide Sublingual Immunotherapy (SLIT)		SELECTED ARTICLES FROM THE RECENT LITERATURE 2008 10/19/07 Teaching Automatic Epinephrine Injections Summary There are a number of different studies in the literature to document the difficulties involved in teaching patients the correct use of automatic epinephrine injectors. The literature is replete with investigations illustrating the following: Sometimes the instructors themselves, including physicians, do not know the proper techniques and therefore teach incorrectly. In spite of being taught correctly, patients frequently do not follow correct procedures in administering automatic epinephrine injectors. Even when taught correctly and familiar with the technique, patients oftentimes fail to give injections for various reasons. A recent article by Huang echoes these findings. In this investigation, a total of 224 parents with children having a history of anaphylaxis were studied in an allergy clinic. They were instructed in nine steps regarding the administration of an EpiPen. On return visits, they were asked to demonstrate the correct use of this device. On the first visit, only 22% were able to repeat the nine steps correctly, but by the second visit, 68% successfully demonstrated the correct use, and by the third visit, 94% of individuals used the device appropriately. The significance of this article is not the reemphasis of the difficulties in teaching the use of automatic epinephrine injectors, but the fact that repeat instruction is necessary and can be effective in correcting mistakes in administration. Reference Huang SW. Pediatr Asthma Allergy Immunol 2007; 20(1):19-22.   BACK
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