Food allergy, particularly the mechanisms of resolution. Running a clinical trial of oral immunotherapy for peanut allergy.

Council member and member of Standards of Care Committee of the British Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
Secretary of Taskforce on the Allergic Child at School for the European Accademy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

I offer out-patient consultations and allergy testing for all children from infants to teenagers. The majority of referred patients will have a history of suspected food allergy, e.g. cow’s milk, egg or peanut/nut allergy. I offer a diagnostic service, identifying the allergens to avoid and often ruling out others, together with development of an individualised management plan for each child. Families receive detailed advice on allergen avoidance. I also allocate emergency medication, together with an emergency treatment plan and practical training for the family on how to use e.g. injectable medication. I have close links with a paediatric dietician who can provide further advice on dietary adequacy.  Referrals are also welcome for children who have had allergy for some time and may have grown out of it, as is often the case for egg and milk allergy, and occasionally peanut/nut allergy.

I would also be pleased to receive referrals of children with allergic rhinoconjunctivitis (hayfever), drug allergy, idiopathic urticaria and angioedema, or idiopathic anaphylaxis. Children with troublesome eczema and asthma may also benefit from an allergy opinion.

I have been a consultant in paediatric allergy at Addenbrooke’s Hospital since 2003, having obtaineed my MD Thesis in Allergy in the same year. I now run the paediatric allergy service at Addenbrooke's and this is complemented by a broad UK Government funded research portfolio. My most recent exciting area of research is developing oral immunotherapy for peanut allergy. I am currently directing a £1M trial with 100 children to determine whether this treatment will be safe and effective for future clinical use.

In 2010 my name appeared on 'The Times' magazine list of Top UK Doctors. I have an active role in our national parent allergy organisation (BSACI) as Council Member and Member of the Standards of Care Committee (charged with producing allergy guidelines for primary through to tertiary care). I recently led on writing a guideline document for managing egg allergy in children to read more please click here. I am Secretary to the Taskforce on the Allergic Child in School, which produced European Guidelines for school allergy management to read more on the guidelines please click here . I am an expert advisor to the national patient support group, the Anaphylaxis Campaign and expert advisor to the UK Government Committee on Toxicity as they reconsider the advice regarding peanut ingestion in pregnancy and early life. I lecture frequently to undergraduates, primary and secondary care doctors and nurses and am a regular invited speaker at national and European allergy conferences.

Families may find my recent 'Q and A' session at 'Mumsnet' of some use as it addresses many commonly raised issues click here to read more on the Q&A session.

When not at work I can be found with my family or on my bicycle. In 2009 I raised £1,600 for the Anaphylaxis Campaign by riding ‘La Marmotte’, a formidable 180 km mile ride in the French Alps over 4 classic mountain climbs from the Tour De France. This year, 2010, I was back in the Alps to ride cycle over more classic climbs from Le Tour: Col D'Izoard, Sestriere, Galibier and Alpe D'Huez (again!).