Reaction to food allergy, what the right thing to do?

my roomate's lip started to swell, and he had patches on his skin, and was breaking out...he had some benadryl and I told him not to worry, he did not have any breathing problems, he wanted to go to the ER but I did not think it was necessary since its been a few hours and he has no breathing complications.. if you have food allergy reaction (just itching, and swelling) should you go to ER? or would benadryl do the job?

p.s...its been a good 3.5 hours since he ate w/e he had

You are correct, if there is just a rash there is nothing to worry about unless it obstructs your airway. if it did not do it with in that time period he has nothing to worry about. It is usually better safe than sorry, but with the amount of time that had lapsed there was no danger that warranted going to the er.

go to the ER, sometimes the reaction is immediate but sometimes it is delayed
taking the benadryl may help, but the hospital has better medicine and can prevent the reaction from getting worse
go on to the ER now - don't let your friend drive himself, if the reaction worsens he could pass out before getting there
best of luck

actually he should go to er i have reactions all time and no matter how small reaction i have to go in it can lead to more serious things and sometimes u may have syptoms that u cant see that can be harmfull in the long run get him to er NOW x

I think unless he worsens he'll be fine but if he knows he has food allergy why did he eat it? If he didn't he'll stay away from it from now on won't he?

I get the same reaction if I eat too much shellfish. Benadryl works fine.THere is no need to go to the ER unless the airways start swelling shut. Assuming he knows what triggered the attack, obviously he should stay away from it, as often these reactions get a bit worse each time. If you go into anaphylatic (spelling?)shock you can die in 15 minutes, but you can get an injection kit like some people have for bee stings that works immediately.

If all he had was a rash then staying home would have been fine. Since he was swelling too he was right to ask to go to the ER. It wasn't your call to say what he should do. He is the one reacting and he knows what is going on inside his body. Swelling is one of those reactions that is considered life threatening.

As long as the airway is not affected then your roommate did the right thing. He/She would have ended up spending half of the night in the ER just to be given the same Benadryl that he/she took at home.

NEVER take an allergy lightly, just because some one is not having breathing difficulty straight off, does not mean they are out of danger.

The only person to say some is OK, is a medical professional. Swelling is serious, and should always be treated as serious, especially when its swelling involves the face/mouth or airways.

YOU were lucky this time, but next time it could mean this persons LIFE!

For future reference look for the following when dealing with some who has allergies.
Symptoms that may indicate a moderate or severe reaction include:

Swelling of the face, eyes, or tongue
Difficulty swallowing
Wheezing
Fear or feeling of apprehension or anxiety
Abdominal cramps or abdominal pain
Nausea and vomiting
Weakness
Dizziness or light-headedness
Chest discomfort or tightness
Difficulty breathing
Unconsciousness

If any one shows these symptoms YOU must call for an ambulance immediately. If they have a Epipen with them(Epinephrine auto-injector) assist to give the injection. Stay with them, monitor their breathing etc and be prepared to give CPR.

Learn CPR and do a First Aid course