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Colin Michie, Deputy Lead, School of Medicine, University of Central Lancashire

Most people who think they are allergic to penicillin aren't

Michael Moloney/Shutterstock

About 6% of people in the UK are wrongly labelled on their medical records as being allergic to penicillin, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society has warned.

This figure is concerning because being labelled as allergic to this class of highly effective antibiotics is associated with an extra six deaths per 1,000 patients a year after being treated for an infection. If patients received the right antibiotic for their infection, many lives could be saved.

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