COVID Corner
Allergy and Anaphylaxis Emergency Action Plan
San Diego County now has a standardized Allergy and Anaphylaxis Emergency Plan (AAEP) that all schools and medical practices are encouraged to adopt. Please follow this AAEP in lieu of other medication authorizations or plans for food allergy and anaphylaxis. Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns about the conditions we treat; you can call the Rady Children’s Hospital clinic at 858-966-5961. View and print the plan below.
English AAEP | Spanish AAEP | Letter to School Nurses
Brooks is coping with severe allergies and participating in an innovative research study. Meet Brooks.
Overview
The Children’s Allergy & Immunology Program of Rady Children’s Specialists of San Diego provides comprehensive care for children/patients with allergic immune disorders, conducts cutting-edge research and is actively involved in professional organizations that advance treatment and research in the field.
Our Asthma & Allergy Clinic is run by medical professionals including pediatric allergists and pediatric immunologists, and offered at Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego, at satellite offices in San Diego and in the city of Murrieta in Riverside county. At the Children’s Hospital, we also offer specialized clinics for immunology, food allergy, severe asthma, eosinophilic gastrointestinal disorders and recurrent fever disorders. The latter two clinics for patients were the first of their kind in the western United States.
Our Food Allergy Center is directed by Stephanie Leonard, M.D., who trained at Mt. Sinai Hospital under the tutelage of Hugh Sampson, M.D., one of the world’s foremost authorities on food allergies.
Our Multidisciplinary Atopic Dermatitis Program (MADP) clinic is directed by Bob Geng, M.D., and Lawrence Eichenfield, M.D. (Dermatology division), and medical professionals provide comprehensive care/services for severe eczema.
Research and clinical trials are a major focus of our Division and have led to the development of promising treatments. Additionally, our pediatric specialists/health professionals/pediatric allergists and pediatric immunologists have multiple roles in local and national organizations, with the goal of improving the lives of children with pediatric allergy & immunology disorders. These organizations include the Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, American Lung Foundation (through the Asthma Camp), The Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network, and American Partnership for Eosinophilic Disorders.
Video: Dr. Hal Hoffman discusses the Allergy & Immunology program
Division/Health Professional Achievements:
- Stephanie Leonard, M.D., has published research in the emerging science of food desensitization and induction of tolerance.
- Seema Aceves, M.D., Ph.D., is the senior author on published international guidelines for the diagnosis of eosinophilic esophagitis in adults and children.
- Seema Aceves, M.D., Ph.D., and Ranjan Dohil, M.D., (Gastroenterology) helped to create a novel steroid formulation to treat eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE).
- Hal Hoffman, M.D., co-discovered the gene for a cold urticaria (hives) syndrome that he originally described. His findings were published in The New England Journal of Medicine. The identification of this gene led to further discoveries and a novel treatment of cryopyrin-associated periodic syndromes (CAPS). This treatment is now the first line and most effective therapy for these previously untreatable diseases.
In the News
- What to Know About Allergic Reactions to the Vaccines, kusi.com, features Stephanie Leonard, M.D.
- Asthma Deaths Rose During the Pandemic. Climate Change May Make it Worse, nbcnews.com, features Sydney Leibel, M.D., M.P.H.
- EPA Honors 2021 Asthma Award Winners, EPA.gov, features Rady Children’s Hospital
- 2017 San Diego Wildfire Increased Pediatric ER Visits for Breathing Problems, Newswire, features Sydney Leibel, M.D., M.P.H.
- Preparing for Summer Travel and Allergies, kusi.com, features Akilah Jefferson, M.D.
- Bullying Grows Among Children with Food Allergies, Sometimes by Teachers: Researchers, nbcsandiego.com, features Stephanie Leonard, M.D.
- New Guideline Primes San Diego Pediatricians for Peanuts, The San Diego Union-Tribune, features Michael Welch, M.D., and Lawrence Eichenfield, M.D.
- Thunderstorm Related Weather Can Trigger Asthmatic Symptoms, features Stephanie Leonard, M.D.
- The Fight Continues Over Peanuts on Airplanes, Mashable, features Stephanie Leonard, M.D.
- Avoiding Peanuts Can Lead to a Peanut Allergy, kusi.com, features Stephanie Leonard, M.D.
- Kids Find Breathing Room at Asthma, Camp California Healthline, features Michael Welch, M.D.
- Children Outgrow Food Allergies: You Need to Retest, MedShadow.org, features Stephanie Leonard, M.D.
- Feeding Infants Peanut Products Could Prevent Allergies, Study Suggests, nytimes.com
- More Resources to Help Children with Food Allergies, U-T San Diego, features Stephanie Leonard, M.D.