A 14 year old boy recently died from anaphylaxis after eating popcorn at his local Odeon. This just breaks my heart, because it’s avoidable. Why am I still reading about deaths from anaphylaxis where people are not carrying their adrenaline, and don’t follow the recommended advice?
I’m not trying to pass blame on the family. My heart goes out to them. They thought they were being responsible by ordering a snack their son had eaten safely before. And they thought they were taking the right action by getting him help, going home and getting his Epipen, but moving someone who is having an allergic reaction can trigger a much more severe outcome.
Why are people not told this?
Why are people not carrying their adrenaline?
When someone has been prescribed an adrenaline auto injector whose responsibility is to make sure they know how serious this condition is? Who explains the protocols, guidelines and advice? Is it their doctor, allergy specialist, pharmacist? All too often people are not told this important advice unless they engage with charities and the online community. We are failing these families. This needs to be addressed before another allergy death.
I have a few comments on what could have been done differently.
- Always carry two adrenaline auto injectors with you at ALL TIMES and administer at first sign of symptoms. Early treatment is so important.
- Always, always check, ask and tell any food servers about your allergies. Don’t assume a previously safe snack or meal is still safe.
- Guidance would suggest that he should not have moved, and instead administered anti-histamines and adrenaline and called 999 from the cinema. Obviously this was not possible.The family had to return home when he started to feel unwell, a short distance away, to retrieve his adrenaline.
- They then drove to the hospital and when he began to have trouble breathing his father administered adrenaline and his mother commenced CPR. I cannot imagine what this must have been like for the parents. The ambulance then arrived, took over his care and took him to hospital where he later passed away. This part of the story is confusing, were they driving in their car or were they in an ambulance? Whatever happened it was all too little too late.
- His mother wondered whether she should have administered adrenaline into his chest for better effect. Just in case anyone else might be thinking the same, you should always administer your auto-injector into the outer mid thigh. Never the chest.
You can read the article, Boy 14, who died after eating popcorn at cinema here.
It just makes me so sad.
I don’t want to read another news story about an allergy death where the person did not have their adrenaline with them. It’s no use to you at home.
I’m nervous about posting this because I don’t want to sound like I’m blaming the parents. I’m not. I have had allergic reactions and not administered adrenaline when I’ve had the pens with me, because I thought my breathing was OK and I wouldn’t need to. I have been wrong many times before and learnt the hard way that early adrenaline is the way to go. Don’t wait until you really cannot breathe to inject. Inject straight away. The saying goes, if in doubt, inject!
This is so sad but if it encourages more people to remember to carry their adrenaline, his death will not have been in vain.
For anyone who is unsure of the correct procedure to follow in the case of anaphylaxis, please read: 20 life saving tips for anaphylaxis here.
Dear Ruth, the moral to this sad story is do not eat popcorn EVER. it is highly allergenic and would be devastating to me.. So sad he was not warned, the NHS allergy clinics are useless and way behind the few private clinics there are. Many years ago, my father undergoing a routine hernia operation nearly died on a post op DEXTROSE, drip, it is made out of corn and I have inherited his allergy. Medic alert is round my wrist.. I look forward to reading your book. xx Jacquie
Gosh corn allergy isn’t that well known about as it’s not one of the top 14. I think they suspected some butter on the popcorn he ate as he had a known dairy allergy so probably not corn that he reacted to. Good that you wear your Medicalert… me too! Although during lockdown I have got out of the habit as I hardly go out! Must get back into that now! Stay safe Jacquie
Incredible post Ruth. Hard to say, but needs to be said! Also the fact it has taken 2 years from his death to have this investigation and the public to know about it!
Hey Lindi, yup, nearly deleted it, but how are we having these same conversations again and again. Oh they didn’t carry their adrenaline. No one know whether he would have had a better chance but it’s not a chance most of us are willing to take. It seems like there area whole load of people with allergies who just don’t realise it’s that serious. It’s getting awareness out to them that’s the key. We are all in agreement and we all share, encourage, support each other and spread our knowledge and awareness but how do we get the message to the people who don’t carry their adrenaline? Who have never had their pen demonstrated to them? Who don’t check ingredients because they take a judgement call? It’s so frustrating… Rant over!
Good to hear from you Ruth, corn allergy is rife in the States, they eat so much of it. Canada are very much aware of it, it is hidden in so many things, a nightmare for me as corn starch comes in so many drugs and medications Beware also of citric acid, not lemons commercially made from corn . I have specials paracetamol, if published as an allergy the pharmaceutical industry would collapse. xx Jacquie
Ah OK, interesting that different countries have more of certain allergies isn’t it? In the UK we have a high prevalence of dairy allergy, egg allergy and peanut and tree nuts… the foods people eat more of I guess. Hidden allergens can be such a problem, especially if not recognised in the top14 as yours clearly aren’t. Thanks again for your comments. Love a good allergy debate.
Dear Ruth I am a Specialist in Allergy and Clinical Immunology and always very interested in your blog as I can realize the patients’ point of view.
I read about the case you reported and I have my own idea. I think that that poor boy died because of an asthma attack. You told that he was athmatic and also had food allergy. I know that possibly those popcorns may have been contaminated, but it is also true that asthmatic patients often stop their inhalatory treatment and this happens also in teens.
I wanted to tell you what I thought about the case and thank you for underlining how important it is to carry epinephrine auto-injectors in order to have them immediately available.
Take care.
Best wishes,
Luisa Ricciardi
Allergist and Immmunologist
University of Messina, Messina, Italy.
You are so right… asthma can be a huge problem when also paired with allergies. We don’t hear whether he was using his asthma medication correctly in the reported facts but it could well have had some bearing the outcome for him on this occasion. I know with me, all my anaphylactic reactions end up involving my airways and I cannot breathe. Asthma may have been the final outcome but it was triggered by an anaphylactic reaction. I feel really strongly that many people with asthma are triggered by allergens, whether they are in the home, airborne or in the food they eat. Obviously it’s far more complex than that and is also affected by so many other things like lifestyle, stress, mental health etc. The moral of the story is, if you are prescribed adrenaline you are prescribed it for a reason. It is of no use to you sitting at home. It must be carried with you at all times to be of any use should you have a reaction. It’s great to hear from a medical practitioner and particularly one in Italy! Hello from England! It feels like an Italian summer here at the moment… it’s been 35 degrees in the shade and us Brits are struggling to stay cool! So take your asthma medication people and carry two injectors with you at all times… please!
Most reactions aren’t serious, but some, like anaphylaxis, can be fatal. It can make you stop breathing or cause your blood pressure to drop too low. Allergies can’t be cured, but there are lots of treatments to relieve the symptoms. If you have a severe allergy, see a doctor and get it treated.