Areas of interest
Research: malnutrition; environmental enteric dysfunction; inflammatory bowel disease; antibiotic-associated diarrhoea; probiotics; atopy; haemoglobin / red cell polymorphisms; malaria
Capacity development: working in partnership with colleagues in low-income countries to improve children’s health and well-being; eLearning; quality improvement
Clinical: paediatric gastroenterology
Professor Allen joined LSTM in September 2014, with the mission to further develop research and teaching in global child health. He was also a Consultant Paediatrician at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital where the main aims are to advance clinical research in paediatric gastroenterology and help develop the hospital’s international programme. Since September 2021, Steve has been based at the Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital, Banjul, The Gambia with a main focus on post-graduate training in paediatrics and building capacity for clinical research.
Steve is the Secretary of the Commonwealth Association of Paediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition (http://capgan.info/). Previously, he was the Chair of the Joint BSPGHAN / NIHR-Children Gastroenterology Hepatology and Nutrition Research Working Group and International Officer for the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH).
Prior to the LSTM appointment, he was Professor in Paediatrics and International Health at the College of Medicine, Swansea University and Honorary Consultant Paediatrician, Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University Health Board, UK. In previous appointments, he has undertaken research, clinical practice and teaching with the Medical Research Council Laboratories, The Gambia and the Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Oxford and Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research.
Research
Steve’s main interests are in paediatric gastroenterology with a focus on interventions to improve gut health in malnutrition and inflammatory bowel disease with current studies in Nigeria, Senegal, India and Indonesia. Previously, he has undertaken clinical research in probiotics in the prevention of atopy in infants and also antibiotic-associated diarrhoea in older people, malaria and the protective effect of inherited haemoglobin and red cell variants against malaria.