THE AUSTRALIAN ALLERGY CENTRE SUPPORTS THE CHOOSING WISELY AUSTRALIA® CAMPAIGN.

Choosing Wisely Australia® is an initiative which aims to improve the quality of healthcare in Australia and help Australians make better decisions relating to their health. There are a complexity of tests, treatments, and procedures available in modern medicine. Choosing Wisely Australia® seeks to identify and offer recommendations relating to healthcare practices established as evidence-based and beneficial, as well as those practices considered more redundant.

Allergies are the fastest growing chronic diseases in Australia. In view of this, Choosing Wisely Australia®, together with the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA), have recently published the five most important things clinicians and consumers should know about allergy health.

1. Don’t use antihistamines to treat anaphylaxis. Prompt administration of adrenaline is the only treatment for anaphylaxis.

2. Alternative and unorthodox methods should not be used for allergy testing or treatment.

3. Allergen Immunotherapy should not be used for routine treatment of food allergy. Research in this area is ongoing.

4. Food specific IgE testing should not be performed without a clinical history suggestive of IgE-mediated food allergy.

5. Don’t delay the introduction of solid and complementary foods to infants. Rather, it is recommended infants be introduced to solid foods from 4-6 months of age.

For more information, the full article can be accessed at: https://www.allergy.org.au/images/stories/reports/ASCIA_Choosing_Wisely_Australia.pdf