Concurrent 10 - Allergy Park: A Jurassic guide to paediatric food allergy
Tracks
Track 3
| Saturday, June 27, 2026 |
| 11:20 AM - 12:15 PM |
| Mossman |
Details
Hold on to your butts… This session will take you on a tour of the different types of paediatric food allergy as well as pesky things that look like allergy but aren’t. While we’re waiting on a rescue and to keep the panic at bay we’ll also explore when allergy testing adds value (and when it just creates more chaos), indications for allergy referral and valuable resources for you and your patients.
Speaker
Dr Sarah Fairhall
Gp
Queensland Health/Far North Allergy
Allergy Park: A Jurassic guide to paediatric food allergy
Abstract
“Hold on to your butts…”
Paediatric food allergy can feel a little like wandering through Jurassic Park – full of creatures that look similar but behave very differently. Some are loud and dramatic (like anaphylaxis), others are delayed and sneaky (like the alphabet soup that is FPIES, FPIAP and FPE) and some look like dinosaurs but aren’t (food intolerance etc).
This session will guide rural GPs through the landscape of paediatric food allergy, using dinosaur species to help you recognise the key differences between IgE mediated food allergy, non-IgE mediated food allergy and allergy mimics. We’ll explore how to manage these prehistoric beasts and review when allergy testing is helpful and when it just creates more chaos. Along the way you’ll collect valuable resources for yourself and your patients, learn when to provide comfort and reassurance, and identify when to call in the Rangers (ie: Immunologists/Allergists).
By the time you’re safe on the helicopter and heading away from Allergy Park, paediatric food allergy should seem less mysterious and more manageable in everyday practice.
Paediatric food allergy can feel a little like wandering through Jurassic Park – full of creatures that look similar but behave very differently. Some are loud and dramatic (like anaphylaxis), others are delayed and sneaky (like the alphabet soup that is FPIES, FPIAP and FPE) and some look like dinosaurs but aren’t (food intolerance etc).
This session will guide rural GPs through the landscape of paediatric food allergy, using dinosaur species to help you recognise the key differences between IgE mediated food allergy, non-IgE mediated food allergy and allergy mimics. We’ll explore how to manage these prehistoric beasts and review when allergy testing is helpful and when it just creates more chaos. Along the way you’ll collect valuable resources for yourself and your patients, learn when to provide comfort and reassurance, and identify when to call in the Rangers (ie: Immunologists/Allergists).
By the time you’re safe on the helicopter and heading away from Allergy Park, paediatric food allergy should seem less mysterious and more manageable in everyday practice.
Biography
Dr Sarah is a born and bred Queenslander and a home grown Queensland GP. Following her ACRRM Fellowship she returned to Cairns and has been working here across the public, community controlled and private sectors ever since. Dr Sarah has extensive experience working in Paediatric and Allergy Medicine and now focuses almost exclusively on supporting patients and families through their allergic disease journey.
Sarah is a warm and approachable professional but occasionally her inner child peeks through, especially if talking about Star Wars, Harry Potter or Formula 1. She values empathy and clarity and has a clinical approach which is thoughtful and considered. She is committed to creating an environment where her patients and families feel comfortable and heard and where knowledge transfer between clinicians is rich and celebrated.
