Vancomycin can cause two types of hypersensitivity reactions, the red
man syndrome and anaphylaxis. Red man syndrome has often been
associated with rapid infusion of the first dose of the drug. The aim of
this study was to investigate the haemodyn
amic changes that follow the
appearance of pruritus during vancomycin administration and
development of red man syndrome. We studied 50 patients scheduled for
coronary artery bypass surgery, and we compared data from patients who
exhibited pruritus with those from patients who did not. Before induction
of anaesthesia, vancomycin (15 mg/kg) was continuously infused at a
constant rate over 30 min. Haemodynamic profiles were recorded before;
during and after the beginning of vancomycin infusion.
