Q&A: Inaugural North American conference to focus on pediatric food allergy
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As pediatric allergy rates increase and therapy progresses, experts will address these issues at the inaugural North American Pediatric Allergy & Asthma Congress, Sept. 21 to 22, in Quebec City.
The conference is co-sponsored by the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology and Canadian Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
“What we’re going to be discussing during the conference, frankly, wouldn’t have been discussed 3 or 5 years ago,” David R. Stukus, MD, FACAAI, co-chair of the conference, told Healio.
“Our understanding of food allergy, diagnosis and management has rapidly evolved, and we’re going to do our best to offer state-of-the-art current understanding and perspective in regard to some really challenging conundrums that we see on a daily basis,” said Stukus, who also is professor of clinical pediatrics in the division of allergy and immunology and director of the Food Allergy Treatment Center at Nationwide Children’s Hospital.
Under the banner of “A Focus on Food Allergy,” topics will include OIT, food allergy prevention, food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome, asthma as a risk factor, epinephrine, biologics, antihistamines, anaphylaxis, food ladders, anxiety and more.
Events will include keynotes, lectures, breakout sessions, fireside chats and debates as well as a “Choose Your Own Adventure” presentation that will invite participants to diagnose and plan treatment for a hypothetical infant with atopic dermatitis.
Healio spoke with Stukus to find out more about the conference and about the state of pediatric care today.
Healio: What can you tell us about this conference?
Stukus: This is the first joint effort between the Canadian Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology and the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Douglas P. Mack, MSc, MD, FRCPC, who is the co-chair of the program committee, had the brilliant idea to try to host a North American pediatric allergy-focused conference where we try to get our professional organizations to sponsor it and really try to get allergists and health care professionals involved, ideally from throughout North America. They’ve done similar efforts in Europe over the last several years, and they have been very successful.
Healio: What is the mission of the conference?
Stukus: It’s really to focus on current clinical practice and expert guidance surrounding common allergic conditions that affect children across the world.
Healio: Why is there a need to specifically spotlight children’s allergy and asthma?
Stukus: Unfortunately, allergic conditions such as food allergy, allergic rhinitis and asthma have increased in prevalence over the last several decades, and these are common conditions that impact daily life for millions of children. And children are not little adults. The way that we diagnose and manage these conditions often is very different than what we do for adults. So having this conference specifically focusing on pediatrics is unique, and we think it’s going to be very helpful.
Healio: The program will include multiple sessions and presentations on OIT. What prompted this focus on OIT?
Stukus: We decided for this year’s inaugural conference to really focus on food allergy. As part of that, OIT represents a true paradigm shift in the way that we treat food allergies. It has been used in clinical practice for over a decade by many allergists in the community and is now becoming a little more widespread, even in academic centers as well.
But OIT involves really a lot of work in getting clinical practices up to speed to be able to offer it, and it requires very long conversations with families regarding the risks, benefits, expected outcomes and the daily regimen it entails. So, we thought, starting the conference by having a half day dedicated specifically to the ins and outs of OIT would be a really good way to bring everybody up to speed.
Healio: Other topics are on the program as well. Are there any other subjects that you would like to spotlight?
Stukus: One is the different methods of immunotherapy. Sublingual immunotherapy is an evolving area, and Edwin H. Kim, MD, MS, is going to be discussing that on day 2 of the conference.
Also, we continue to learn a lot about food allergy prevention strategies — what has worked, what hasn’t worked and how the evidence has evolved. Elissa M. Abrams, MD, FRCPC, will be discussing that as well.
And then not all food allergies have immediate onset or cause anaphylaxis. These non-IgE food allergies or delayed food allergies really require an astute clinician to be able to diagnose them. Anna H. Nowak-Wegrzyn, MD, PhD, is going to offer the most current perspective about those conditions as well.
Those are some of the more important topics that we’re going to cover. But frankly, all of our presentations are going to be updates and guidance on how we should be managing things at this point, including some of the nuances of food allergy.
Healio: Are there any other speakers you would like to highlight?
Stukus: We are so fortunate to have speakers who are some of the true food allergy experts from across the world. We have Paul Turner, BM, BCh, coming to join us from Europe and Arnon Elizur, MD, who is travelling from Israel.
Aikaterini Anagnostou, MD (Hons), MSc, PhD; R. Sharon Chinthrajah, MD; Matthew Greenhawt, MD, MBA, MSc; Elana Levine, MD; Jay Lieberman, MD; and Antonella Muraro, MD, PhD, are all great experts from the United States, Canada and Europe as well.
Just looking at the lineup of speakers, we couldn’t be more pleased to have such true experts — and not just experts, but dynamic presenters as well — join us for our conference.
Healio: Is there anything else you would like to add about the conference?
Stukus: We’re excited to offer it. I think it’s going to be very educational for everybody who attends. Hopefully, we’re going to positively impact clinical practice, and then attendees can take what they learn back to their patients and improve their lives.
For more information:
David R. Stukus, MD, FACAAI, can be reached at david.stukus@nationwidechildrens.org.