Title: The 3 Most Common Causes of Drug Allergies and How to Treat Them - GoodRx
Headings: The 3 Most Common Causes of Drug Allergies and How to Treat Them
The 3 Most Common Causes of Drug Allergies and How to Treat Them
Benita Lee, MPH
What are drug allergies?
Common allergy symptoms
Drugs that can cause allergic reactions
1) Aspirin and other NSAID pain relievers
2) Penicillin antibiotics
3) Sulfa drugs
How to treat a drug allergy

Content: Because of the risk of penicillin allergies, physicians often opt for another course of treatment when it comes to antibiotics. However, there are certain conditions where only penicillin will work. For these cases, physicians often suggest “drug desensitization”, a procedure where patients are slowly given higher and higher doses of a drug as they are monitored for potential allergy symptoms. To ensure safety, this is typically done in a hospital, so emergency medical help is nearby if a serious reaction occurs. Once a tolerant threshold is found, doctors then hold off on increasing the dose any further. 3) Sulfa drugs
Sulfa drugs, or drugs that contain sulfonamide, can cause allergic reactions as well — in about 3% of people according to research. Pay particular attention to antimicrobials and anticonvulsants, as they often belong to the sulfa drug family. Interestingly, people are more likely to experience allergic reactions to sulfa antibiotics than other types of sulfa drugs. For a full list of sulfa drugs, read more here. Because so many different drug types have sulfonamide as an active ingredient, physicians are extra careful when prescribing sulfa drugs.