What is Anaphylaxis

So what is Anaphylaxis?

It is a severe allergic reaction. Allergic reactions are caused by the sudden release of chemicals, including histamine, from cells in the body. This is triggered by the reaction between the immune system and the food or substance (known as an allergen) it has been exposed to.

Your casualty will have been exposed to the allergen before, although the person may not have been aware of it at the time. When this happened, the allergen was wrongly identified as a threat and antibodies were made against it, which means that on the next exposure, a serious reaction may occur.

The system is so sensitive that sometimes even tiny amounts of the allergen can cause an allergic reaction.