Cutting edge diagnostics and treatments for children who have food allergies

At your child’s first treatment appointment, they will be given a tiny amount of the specific allergen for desensitisation under direct supervision of our specialist nurses. There will be a period of observation thereafter and you should allow 90 minutes for this appointment. As long as all goes well, you will be advised to give your child the same dose every day at home, mixed into a small amount of soft food, until it is time to visit us again (about 2 weeks later) to trial the next, higher dose.

If your child is undergoing Multi-OIT, you can expect the first appointment to last approximately 3 hours with the first allergen given, period of observation, second allergen given and period of observation. As long as all goes well, you will be advised to give your child the same dose of both allergens every day at home, mixed into a small amount of soft food, until it is time to visit us again (about 2 weeks later) to trial the next, higher dose.

At your child’s first treatment appointment, they will be given a series of tiny but increasing doses of PALFORZIA (from 0.5mg to 6mg of peanut protein) under direct supervision of our specialist nurses. If your child can tolerate at least 3mg, they can continue on to the next step in the treatment pathway. This is the longest visit lasting about 4 hours. If your child reacts to these tiny doses, they may not be suitable to continue the treatment.

You will return to our centre every two weeks, so your child can begin the Up-Dosing phase of treatment. If all goes well with supervised administration, you will be advised to give your child the higher dose achieved every day at home. Each up-dosing appointment will be approximately 90 minutes, you will need 8-11 visits depending on the allergen for desensitisation.

You will return to our centre every two weeks, so your child can begin the Up-Dosing phase of treatment. If all goes well with supervised administration, you will be advised to give your child the higher dose of both allergens achieved every day at home. Each up-dosing appointment will be approximately 90 minutes and you will need 8-11 visits depending on the allergens for desensitisation.

You will return to our centre the next day, so your child can begin the Up-Dosing phase of treatment. We will administer the first dose of PALFORZIA and monitor carefully to make sure your child can keep taking PALFORZIA. As long as this goes well, starting on the next day, you will give your child the same dose of PALFORZIA every day at home, mixed into a small amount of soft food, until it is time to visit us again (about 2 weeks later) to see if your child is ready for the next, higher dose. Up dosing takes about 6 months to complete, with approximately 11 visits in all.

Once your child has reached the maintenance phase they will continue to eat or drink a specified amount of the allergen on a regular basis at home, in order to maintain tolerance. The frequency of this can vary depending on the individual and the food allergen, and may be anywhere from 2-3 times per week, to daily.

Once your child has reached the maintenance phase they will continue to eat or drink a specified amount of the allergen on a regular basis at home, in order to maintain tolerance. The frequency of this can vary depending on the individual and the food allergen, and may be anywhere from 2-3 times per week, to daily.

After your child has completed Up-Dosing, they should be showing a decreased sensitivity to peanut allergen. To maintain this treatment effect, they will still need to continue taking PALFORZIA every day. This is called the Maintenance Dose and is around 300mg of peanut protein – approximately equivalent to one very large peanut kernel. Being able to have this without reacting, will confirm that your child is already at a much lower risk of reacting to accidental exposure to peanut (which are usually less peanut than this).

Follow up will be with your child’s usual Allergist.

Follow up will be with your child’s usual Allergist.

Once the maintenance dose is being regularly consumed, there is no need for further visits. However, we will still need to have a 6 monthly check up to ensure everything is going well. Research studies show that whilst the maintenance dose must be continued in order to maintain the effect of the treatment, doing so for an extended period of a year or more appears to enhance the effectiveness of the treatment. There will also be a discussion about switching to alternate peanut products and the options include continuing on the PALFORZIA product, or changing to a favoured product containing a similar amount of peanut protein e.g. an M&M sweet, a measured portion of peanut flour or peanut butter. For some patients/families this will be the preferred option. We will discuss a new appointment in order to supervise the first dose of the chosen food and dietary advice will be given on how to continue on such products. It is important to remember that PALFORZIA is not a cure, your child will need to continue carrying an adrenaline device and bespoke emergency plan and avoid peanut.