Adverse reactions to drug additives.

There is a long list of additives used by the pharmaceutical industry. Most of the agents used have not been implicated in hypersensitivity reactions. Among those that have, only reactions to parabens and sulfites have been well established. Parabens have been shown to be responsible for rare immunoglobulin E-mediated reactions that occur after the use of local anesthetics. Sulfites, which are present in many drugs, including agents commonly used to treat asthma, have been shown to provoke severe asthmatic attacks in sensitive individuals. Recent studies indicate that additives do not play a significant role in "hyperactivity." The role of additives in urticaria is not well established and therefore the incidence of adverse reactions in this patient population is simply not known. In double-blind, placebo-controlled studies, reactions to tartrazine or additives other than sulfites, if they occur at all, are indeed quite rare for the asthmatic population, even for the aspirin-sensitive subpopulation.