Twenty-year Comparison of Delabeling Pediatric Patients with Penicillin Allergy with and Without Prior Skin Testing

Approximately 10% of the US population, including at least 5 million children, report a penicillin allergy though more than 90% of those individuals are found to have no allergy after evaluation.1,2 Less than 1% of patients with penicillin allergy have immunoglobulin (Ig)E-mediated reactions and approximately 80% of those patients will lose their sensitivity after 10 years.3 Inferior clinical outcomes, such as 50% increase in surgical site infections, prolonged hospitalization, use of less efficacious, more broad-spectrum antibiotics, and increased mortality, are associated with penicillin avoidance in adults with penicillin allergy.