Rise in Anaphylaxis Cases Sparks Renewed Call for Allergy Tsar

NEW figures show that the number of admissions for severe allergic reactions in England has increased once again.

The latest figures from NHS Digital show the number of hospital episodes in England with a primary diagnosis of anaphylaxis increased from 5,497 in 2018-19 to 5,517 in 2019-20. Previous figures have shown the number of cases of children hospitalised with severe allergic reactions in England has increased by 72 per cent over the last six years. Overall, including adults, there has been a 34 per cent rise in admissions over the same period.

Figures from 2019 reveal wide regional differences among children admitted to hospital with anaphylaxis. The health region with the highest increase is London where the number of cases has risen by 167% from 180 in 2013-14 to 480 in 2018-19. Among those ten and under, the increase is a staggering 200 per cent.

Here at The Natasha Allergy Research Foundation, we are alarmed at the further rise in hospital admissions for anaphylaxis.

Today Natasha’s Foundation has renewed its call for the Government to appoint an ‘Allergy Tsar’ to co-ordinate and take steps to make sure people with allergies get the treatment and care they need.

Natasha’s Foundation first called for the appointment of an ‘Allergy Tsar’ earlier this year following the inquest of Shante Turay-Thomas, 18, who died in 2018 from anaphylaxis after eating hazelnut.

Shante Turay-Thomas

Tanya with Shante’s mother Emma

Natasha’s parents Nadim and Tanya, who attended Shante’s inquest, said: ‘These new NHS Digital figures show another worrying rise in admissions for anaphylaxis which is largely caused by food allergies. The prevalence of serious allergic reactions has been growing at a significant rate year on year for several years now which is extremely concerning. This further underlies the importance of better food labelling and more research into the cause of food allergies to prevent these severe allergic reactions occurring. We urgently need the Government to appoint an ‘Allergy Tsar’ to co-ordinate and take steps to make sure people with allergies get the treatment and care they need.’

Following the inquest into Shante’s death, the coroner warned that there is a risk that avoidable deaths like Shante’s will occur in the future because there is ‘no person with named accountability for allergy services at NHS England or the Department of Health’.

The inquest heard that a series of failures meant that an ambulance took more than 40 minutes to arrive at her home in north London in September 2018. She was not receiving specialist care for her allergies, was unaware that she needed to use two shots of her auto-injector adrenaline pen for a serious allergic reaction and had not received medical training in using her device.

Shante’s mother Emma Turay says the appointment of an ‘Allergy Tsar’ would ensure that  ‘allergies are fully understood, and this needs to be filtered down to professionals and systems so a tragedy like Shante’s doesn’t happen again’. She told us: ‘There were so many errors which led to losing my Shante and I would like an ‘Allergy Tsar’ to bring together all the different strands to keep people safe. We need a more streamlined and joined up system so that people with severe allergies get the help and support they need.’

Jill Paterson, who represented the families of both Shante Turay-Thomas and Natasha Ednan-Laperouse at inquest said:

“We wholeheartedly endorse the call for an ‘Allergy Tsar’ that is being made by the families of Shante Turay-Thomas and Natasha Ednan-Laperouse. If an ‘Allergy Tsar’ were appointed, their role and responsibilities could go some way towards preventing further tragic loss. We hope that the coroner’s recommendations made in her prevention of future deaths report will be taken very seriously by the authorities concerned and that real changes will be made.”

Around 2 million people have a food allergy in the UK, and food allergy is the most common cause of life-threatening anaphylaxis presenting to hospital emergency departments.

To care for people with allergies, more specialist clinical teams and research are urgently needed, but training and research are currently underfunded.