Is direct oral amoxicillin challenge a viable approach for ‘low-risk’ patients labelled with penicillin allergy?

Spurious penicillin allergy (PenA) is a major public health problem. Up to 10% of the population and 20% of inpatients are labelled with PenA, but only <5%–10% have a proven allergy following comprehensive investigations. PenA tests are labour intensive and require specialist input, which may not be readily available due to limited allergy services. Therefore, patients with PenA receive alternative antibiotics that are associated with higher rates of iatrogenic infections, antimicrobial resistance and a longer hospital stay with consequent increased costs. Recent evidence suggests that a supervised ‘direct’ oral amoxicillin challenge (without performing allergy tests) is a safe option in low-risk patients (those least likely to be allergic based on history). Patient selection for this procedure is based on a careful guideline-based risk stratification process. Further research is needed to validate this intervention in routine clinical practice and explore potential facilitators and barriers to implementation in different healthcare settings.