Naseptin and peanut oil: a survey of practitioners' awareness in the UK.

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine how aware ENT practitioners are that Naseptin (Alliance), widely used in ENT practice, contains peanut oil and to what extent this is conveyed to patients.

Methods: A questionnaire was sent out to all ENT practitioners registered with the British Association of Otolaryngologists.

Result: Analysis of the data confirmed that Naseptin cream is widely used in ENT practice and showed that although most practitioners are aware that Naseptin cream contains refined peanut oil (arachis oil) (74.3 per cent of consultants and 93.6 per cent of registrars) not all ask their patients whether they are allergic to peanuts (62.6 per cent of consultants and 87.3 per cent of registrars).

Conclusion: The results suggest that more should be done to raise awareness amongst practitioners that Naseptin cream contains peanut oil and should be avoided in patients with a peanut allergy, as recommended by national guidelines. The use of Naseptin cream when contraindicated may have medicolegal implications.