I too would highly recommend Dr Cox - i saw her only last week with my daughter - she was recommended by my GP - My daughters excema is not that bad or so i thought ( i was comparing my brothers at her age) but she immediately tested her for allergy's - and although i had thought it was dairy or preservatives it was actually grass. Its early days and i have no idea if her suggestions regarding treatment will work - but came away trusting her. She and GP also recommended i see Dietician Lusie Marino also at same practice.

Dear Starfish,

I hope that things are improving with your daughter's skin. It can seem like a full time job applying enough moisturiser to keep skin supple and healthy. Food allergy is a recognised cause of eczema and if it isn't diagnosed, getting on top of the eczema can be impossible. It's incredibly distressing to see your child suffering especially if you feel that your concerns aren't being taken seriously. NICE has some guidelines that explain a bit about food allergy and when a child should be referred to a specialist for allergy testing. There's a version of the guidance written specifically for patients and carers

http://guidance.nice.org.uk/CG116/PublicInfo/pdf/English

There's also some information about eczema

http://guidance.nice.org.uk/CG57/PublicInfo/pdf/English

If you click on the link in red type, it takes you through to the document.

I hope that you find this useful.

Nightingales Doctors
Bringing healthcare to your home

http://www.nightingalesdoctors.com
info@nightingalesdoctors.com

As a naturopath, I use different methods of allergy testing. The main one I use is a home kit that is specific for food allergies. The reason I use it, is because it is easy to use and virtually gives you results instantly.
the link is http:http://www.camnutri.com

But I have found, if you eliminate a specific food, it does not stop there. Often children will develop more and more allergies. And by eliminating more foods, you essentially will start eliminating foods required for growth and development. As a naturopath (basically a nutritionist and herbalist in one) I work on improving immunity, but more importantly digestive health. If digestion is poor, small food particles enter the blood stream and your immunity becomes sensitive to it. The result is a hypersensitive body that reacts to more and more foods. So I work on improving and healing digestion to prevent this.

Addressing the core of any allergy, helps prevent further allergies.

If your child has any allergies, I would be happy to help http://www.flownaturopathy.co.uk/mother-and-children.html

your child may be allergic to other foods so avoidance may not help. Our daughter got diagnosed when she was 8 months old. Yes it was difficult to get a referral, the doc gave it because I used to visit the surgery sometimes 2 or 3 times a week, visiting A&E too, her eczema was so out of control we were desperate. A first referral to St Thomas didn't help (they didn't manage to take enough blood and the consultants were also pushing for avoidance diet) so the doc gave another referral this time to C&W and they sorted her out straight away, putting her on Neocate milk at first visit. One month later we could see a difference for the first time she could sleep, settle down and play, and looked like a completely different baby, much calmer. The consultant there said that the protein in goat's milk is very close to the one in cow's milk, so it is common to react to both. You can email me if you have any questions, my daugher is now 5 and still allergic to about 15 different foods.

It seems unbelieveval that your GP is not giving you a referral... You should put your foot down and tell him you wont leave the room until you get one. I would certainly do that ;)
If you have private insurance, your GP should give you a referral letter straight away. I have BUPA and they are great for children. You can go and see a specialist and hey can approve and reimburse you afterward. Now, they dont even ask me anymore to see the referal letters and everything from after they were born as lways been approved.
Good luck.

It seems unbelieveval that your GP is not giving you a referral... You should put your foot down and tell him you wont leave the room until you get one. I would certainly do that ;)
If you have private insurance, your GP should give you a referral letter straight away. I have BUPA and they are great for children. You can go and see a specialist and hey can approve and reimburse you afterward. Now, they dont even ask me anymore to see the referal letters and everything from after they were born as lways been approved.
Good luck.

We've been seeing Professor Gideon Lack at St. Thomas's for our daughter's egg allergy and he was great but again think it may be good idea to go for a referral via your GP.

Hi

My son was referred to a brilliant allergist at St Georges Hospital. He was fantastic with kids and very thorough, maybe ask your Dr for a referral.

We took my son to a specialist in Harley Street for allergy testing. We wanted to rule out allergies as he has an intermittent rash on his face.

The paediatrician was called Dr Helen Cox at the Harley Street paediatric group.
The clinic was smart and professional with very kind nurses.

We were referred by our GP and then we claimed it on our health insurance but my GP did tell me that St Georges has an excellent Allergy clinic (NHS) which we would have got an appointment at within about 5 weeks.

I am surprised that your GP will not refer you to any specialists.
It is not fair for your daughter to suffer. I would try putting your foot down or just trying a different doctor at your practice. (They often have very different advice I find)

We are treating my son at the moment but everything she recommended we have obtained on NHS prescription.

Good luck

Emily

I'm having s bit of a nightmare trying to identify what is causing my daughter's eczema? For eight months it seemed to be under control by replacing full fat cow's milk with goat's but since the start of July it's been so terrible and despite following Doctor's advice in eliminating foods then slowly reintroducing them, we don't seem to have got anywhere. We're still very much in the eliminating stage yet a month on the eczema doesn't seem to have improved and she's scratching her arms and legs badly every night.

It feels like we will need to continue with this trial and error process for months before convincing the doctor to give us a referral for testing so I was wondering if anyone had been to any good private allergy specialists they could recommend and if anyone had any advice?!!

Thank you!!