Treatment of Kounis syndrome

Abstract

Kounis syndrome is potentially a life-threatening medical emergency with both a severe allergic reaction and acute coronary syndrome. Most of the information about this syndrome has come from the case reports. The management of these patients may be challenging for clinicians, and unfortunately guidelines have not been established yet. In this article, we review the current guidelines of acute coronary syndromes and anaphylaxis along with the published cases with Kounis syndrome secondary to beta-lactam antibiotics. We have summarized our recommendations for the work-up and treatment of Kounis syndrome from available data. Obviously, larger prospective studies are needed to establish definitive treatment guidelines for these patients.