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Breath test to reduce peanut allergy trauma

Breath test to reduce peanut allergy trauma

Dr Rani Bhatia and Dr Adam Collison with HCRF Chair Janelle Shakespeare

As the prevalence of peanut allergy increases world-wide, two HMRI paediatric researchers are developing a unique diagnostic test that will be less traumatic and more accurate for young patients.

Dr Rani Bhatia and Dr Adam Collison with HCRF Chair Janelle Shakespeare

As the prevalence of peanut allergy increases world-wide, two HMRI paediatric researchers are developing a unique diagnostic test that will be less traumatic and more accurate for young patients.

Dr Adam Collison and Dr Rani Bhatia received a $25,000 grant tonight at the annual Hunter Children’s Research Foundation (HCRF) Awards to expand their trial of a biomarker derived from FeNO (fraction of exhaled nitric oxide) levels in a patient’s breath.

The current accepted standard for diagnosis is to give children a peanut serving in a hospital setting where anaphylactic attacks can be clinically managed if they occur. It is often a stressful experience for the child and places a significant burden on medical staff.

“Patients with peanut allergy are at the highest risk of suffering life-threatening anaphylaxis so there is a growing need for improved diagnostic biomarkers to clarify childhood food allergy and improve patient safety,” Dr Collison said.

“We recently performed a study at John Hunter Children’s Hospital and HMRI which identified the FeNO in patients’ breath as a significantly better predictor of peanut allergy status than either a skin prick test or the optimal blood test.

“This biomarker could not only differentiate between allergic and non-allergic reactions, it was also capable of differentiating between those who will have an anaphylactic reaction versus clinically significant but not anaphylactic response to peanuts.”

Under the HCRF-funded study, children aged 6-18 years with suspected peanut allergy will be invited to participate in a double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover food challenge using a mince-based meal containing either peanut flour or gluten-free flour.

“This is the first test in the world capable of making this distinction, and successful completion of the study will be a significant breakthrough in the area of food allergy,” Dr Collison added.

Around 8 per cent of children suffer from physician-diagnosed food allergy, however recent figures from the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology place the rate in European children as high as 22 per cent.

*Dr Collison is from the University of Newcastle and Dr Bhatia is from Hunter New England Health. Both research in conjunction with HMRI’s VIVA program. HMRI is a partnership between the University of Newcastle, Hunter New England Health and the community.

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