Background: Penicillin discovered in 1928 by Sir Alexander Fleming, beginning of the antibiotic revolution. Penicillin as helped increase average life Span in USA from 47 years to 78.8 years. Beta lactam account to about 40% of total antibiotic use every year. 10% of patients in U.S. report penicillin allergy, but 9 out of 10 patients […]

Background: Pregnant patients labeled with a penicillin allergy (PcnA) and charted as Group B streptococcus (GBS) positive can spread this infection to their baby during a vaginal delivery resulting in serious illness for their newborns. GBS is the most common cause of infectious morbidity and mortality in the neonatal period during the first week of […]

Background: In the United States, 32 million people have a documented penicillin allergy and up to 20% of hospitalized patients’ records describe a penicillin allergy (PcnA). Less than 10% of patients with reported penicillin allergy have true clinically relevant PcnA when objectively tested through rigorous skin testing (1-3). Clinicians subsequently avoid appropriate penicillin or penicillin […]

Background: Penicillin class antibiotics are the most frequently reported drug allergy in the electronic health record (EHR), but recent studies find

Background: Self-reported penicillin (PCN) allergy affects 7-10% of the community population and affects almost 20% of hospitalized patients nationally [1,2]. Mislabeling of side effects (gastrointestinal symptoms) or coincidental events (headache) as a true allergic reaction (IgE-mediated type I hypersensitivity) contributes largely to statistics. In recent studies, the rate of positive skin test results to PCN […]

Case Presentation: A 31-year-old man presented to the ED with one week of worsening cough, headaches, and abdominal pain. Initial laboratory evaluation revealed a total bilirubin level of 15.6 mg/dL, ALP 181 U/L, ALT 518 U/L, AST 829 U/L. Lipase and GGT were within normal range. Chest x-ray and abdominal ultrasound showed no abnormalities. He […]

Case Presentation: A 55-year-old male with a history of hypertension and bipolar disorder presented with abdominal and groin pain, and unintentional 40lb weight loss over the past 4 months. Furthermore he reported fevers, chills, hematuria, and dysuria. On physical exam he had right upper quadrant abdominal tenderness, bilateral hard and immobile inguinal lymph nodes, and […]