Generalised allergic reaction to human insulin

✍ Scribed by Abdu, T.A.M. ;Wilkins, J. ;Yelland, M. ;Scarpello, J.H.B.

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2000
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 77 KB
• Volume: 17
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1357-8170
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1528-252x(200001)17:1<31::aid-pdi14>3.0.co;2-9

✦ Synopsis

Allergy to human recombinant DNA insulin is a rare but important clinical problem. We describe a 36-year-old male who had had type 1 diabetes for 25 years and presented with a 4 day history of swelling, redness and irritation at the site of injections with human actrapid and human insulatard. Symptoms occurred approximately 20 minutes after injection followed by generalised urticaria with swollen lips and tongue and periorbital oedema. The symptoms improved within a few hours only to worsen again subsequent to the next injection of insulin. He denied any breathing dif®culty. There was only minimal and transient response to antihistamines. Skin testing con®rmed allergy to the insulin molecule. He was desensitised with multiple injections of insulin of increasing concentration over two days. Subsequently he tolerated his insulin without any allergic reaction. Desensitisation is an effective technique in treating insulin allergy.