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01 September 2015
EU
Food Allergy
- Food Safety, - Medicines

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has recommended several measures to ensure that patients and carers use adrenaline auto-injectors successfully. Among the measures, EMA suggests introducting more effective educational material on the use of these medical devices.  

Adrenaline auto-injectors are potentially life-saving treatments for anaphylaxis (severe allergic reactions) while the patient waits for emergency medical assistance. EMA carried out a review of adrenaline auto-injectors following concerns that currently available devices may deliver adrenaline under the skin instead of into a muscle, delaying the patients’ response to treatment.

Having assessed all the available data, EMA’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) acknowledged that giving the medicine by injection into the muscle is the preferred way to obtain a rapid response in anaphylaxis. However, the CHMP also concluded that training of the user is of paramount importance.

The companies that market adrenaline auto-injectors will therefore be asked to develop more effective educational material for patients, as well as for healthcare professionals, to ensure their optimal use. This will include a training device with which patients can practise; audio-visual material to show in detail how the device is to be used; and a checklist for prescribers to ensure that sufficient information is given to the patient before they use the auto-injector.

Full text is of EMA recommendation is available here.