health

The exact number of cases of anaphylaxis in the United States each year
is unknown, partly because some doctors use the term to refer to relatively
mild allergic reactions while others use it to describe only those severe enough
to be considered life-threatening. About 30,000 people are taken to hospital
emergency rooms with an anaphylactic reaction in an average year. A commonly
cited statistic is that about 15 percent of the general population is at risk of anaphylaxis,
with one percent of the population at specific risk of anaphylaxis caused by medications
and another one percent allergic to latex. It is estimated that there are between 500
and 1,000 deaths from anaphylaxis each year in the United States; fifty of these
deaths are caused by insect stings. People of all races, both sexes, and all age groups are
equally at risk of anaphylaxis. Elderly people, however, are more likely
than younger people to die from anaphylaxis because they often suffer
from other diseases or medical conditions. Research conducted at Harvard
in 2007 suggests that there may be geographical differences in the
rates of anaphylaxis in the United States, with a higher proportion of
cases in the Northeast and lower rates in the West and South. The
researchers are not certain of the reasons for these differences, however.