Angioedema indicates acute subcutaneous
edema that characterizes improperly restricted cutaneous or mucous membrane swelling, which can occur only once or be relapsing.
Edema usually occurs in the periorbital area, lips, tongue, extremities and intestinal wall. It has turned out that
angioedema is usually caused by the use of
angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACE) or
allergies to certain
allergens (allergic or
IgE-mediated
angioedema), followed by
C1 inhibitor deficiency (hereditary and
acquired angioedema), or the cause is unknown (idiopathic
angioedema). It has been shown that patients with
angioedema often have
urticaria, which is noted in approximately 50% of cases. Usually there is a type I
allergic reaction to some food
allergens or drugs or
insect stings. The most common causes of allergic
angioedema are bee and wasp
stings, reactions to medications or
injections for sensitivity testing, and certain foods (especially eggs, shellfish and nuts). In diagnostic terms, it is important to determine the potential
allergen, which is commonly performed with cutaneous tests, such as prick test, etc. The main risk of
angioedema is swelling of the tongue, larynx and trachea, which can lead to
airway obstruction and death, therefore
tracheotomy is indicated in such cases. The initial treatment of patients with most forms of
angioedema included administration of
antihistamines and
glucocorticoids, while
epinephrine is given if there is fear from
laryngeal edema.