LOOKING BACK AT

BAPO 2026

Our premier two-day conference brought together specialists from across the UK and beyond.

BAPO 2026 brought together specialists in paediatric ENT for two days of learning, collaboration and discussion, with a comprehensive programme exploring the latest developments in clinical practice, research and innovation. The conference featured expert speakers, international perspectives, keynote presentations and lively discussions around the challenges and opportunities shaping paediatric otorhinolaryngology. Research presentations and interactive sessions provided opportunities to share knowledge, exchange ideas and strengthen connections across the specialty.

This page brings together some of the highlights from BAPO 2026, including photographs from the event, the research abstracts presented during the conference and the full programme. You can make your way through the page or use the buttons below to jump to a particular section.

Thank you for making BAPO 2026 such a memorable meeting.

Dear colleagues,

It was a pleasure to welcome so many of you to Liverpool for the BAPO 2026 Annual Meeting, our first two-day conference bringing together specialists from across the UK and beyond.

The meeting provided a wonderful opportunity to share knowledge, explore the latest developments in paediatric ENT and strengthen the connections that make our specialty such a collaborative community.

Particular highlights included the John Evans Lecture, delivered by Ray Clarke, and the keynote address from Marlene Soma, alongside an excellent programme of research presentations, interactive discussions and clinical insights.

I would like to extend my sincere thanks to all our speakers, presenters, delegates, organisers and supporters for their contributions to the meeting. Your enthusiasm and engagement helped make BAPO 2026 such a valuable and enjoyable occasion.

I hope you enjoyed the conference as much as we enjoyed hosting it, and that you took away new ideas, renewed connections and a few fond memories of Liverpool’s famous hospitality.

Su De

President, BAPO, 2025-2026

With thanks to our speakers.

BAPO 2026: Moments from the Meeting.

BAPO 2026 Research Abstracts.

Research and innovation were central to BAPO 2026, with a programme of presentations showcasing work from across the paediatric ENT community. Explore the 81 research abstracts submitted for the meeting, including Research Prize submissions, oral presentations and poster presentations. Use the filters and search function below to find abstracts of interest, or select an individual presentation to read the full submission.

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The Full Programme.

Thursday 24th September

8:30am-9:30am

Registration

x

9:30am-9:40am

President’s Welcome

Su De

Session 1: 9:40am-10:50am

Chair: Kate Blackmore

x

9:40am-10:20am

BAPOJ Research Prize 2026

Panel: 
Andy Hall, Haytham Kubba, Jess Bewick 

10:20am-10:50am

Panel: Emergency Debates

Moderator:
Mike Saunders 

Panel:
Kate Stephenson, Moe al Salem, Sheneen Meghji, Andrew Hoey 

10:50am-11:20am

Coffee and Present your poster (judging session)

x

Session 2: 11:20am-12:40pm

Chair: Mira de Kruijf

x

11:20am-11:40am

Keynote:
From training in Paediatric ENT in three continents to building a service Down Under.

Marlene Soma 

11:40am-12:00pm

Specialist ENT Nursing
Making a difference in Paediatric ENT

Alison Flynn, Anita Lee, Louise Ross

12:00pm-12:20pm

Who needs sleep anyway?

Chris Grime

12:20pm-12:40pm

What after an adenotonsillectomy for children with Down syndrome and OSA?

Liam Sutton

12:40pm-1:40pm

Lunch and meet the sponsors 

x

12:40pm-1:40pm

Nurse breakout session

x

Session 3: 1:40pm-3:30pm

Chair: Su De

x

1:40pm-2:10pm

The John Evans Lecture:
A Wilde Knight

Ray Clarke

2:10pm-2:40pm

Pop up Presentations 1: 
5×5 mins each

Moderators:
Mat Daniel, Andrea Burgess 

2:40pm-3:00pm

Managing allergic rhinitis in children

Vibha Sharma

3:00pm-3:30pm

Coffee and Present your poster (judging session)

x

Session 4: 3:30pm-5:20pm

Chair:Sarah O’Donnell

x

3:30pm-3:35pm

Update on Greener Future Sustainability Prize

Jonny Abbas

3:35pm-4:05pm

Pop up Presentations 2: 
5×5 mins each

Moderators:
Adam Donne , Lesley Cochrane

4:05pm-4:25pm

The Importance of aetiological assessment on access to early hearing intervention  

Sharon Cushing

4:25pm-4:45pm

National Button Battery Guidance Update

Nara Orban

4:45pm-5:15pm

Panel:
Craniofacial, Pierre Robin syndrome, BAHIs, microtia, Treacher Collins

Moderator:
Sunil Sharma 

Panel:
Anusha Hennedige, Rob Nash, Juliana Bonilla-Velez, Sharon Cushing 

5:15pm-6:30pm

Reception

x

From 7pm

Networking Event

Flight Club, Liverpool

Friday 25th September

Session 5: 9:00am-10:30am

Chair: Ayla Tabaksert 

x

9:00am-9:30am

Panel: Trainee matters
Research, innovation and life in paediatric ENT

Moderator: 
Hannah Emerson 

Panel: 
Tom Hampton , Jonny Abbas, Lizzie Maughans, Michael Maher

9:30am-9:35am

SALT: The Paediatric Laryngology Working Group

Marion Alston

9:35am-9:40am

BAPOJ Research Prize 2025
Update from last years research prize winner

Ben Talks

9:40am-10:00am

From Patient to Patient Voice

Thomas Pearce 

10:00am-10:30am

Pop up Presentations 3: 
5×5 mins each

Moderators: 
Marianne Elloy, Malin Wendt

10:30am-11:00am

Coffee and browse posters

x

Session 6: 11:00am-12:40pm

Chair: Hasnaa Ismail-Koch

x

11:00am-11:15am

Presidential Address

Su De

11:15am-11:50am

Panel:
Otology/ implants including RABBIT launch

Moderator: 
James Ramsden 

Panel:  
Sunil Sharma, Sharon Cushing, Andy Hall, Jaya Nichani 

11:50am-12:20pm

Pop up Presentations 4: 
5×5 mins each

Moderators: 
Samantha Goh, Keith Trimble 

12:20pm-12:40pm

Launch of BAPO/BRS septoplasty/turbinate surgery guidance. Update on Choanal Atresia Surgery

Grace Khong 

12:40pm-1:40pm

Lunch and meet the sponsors 

x

1:10pm-1:40pm

BAPO Annual General Meeting

BAPO Members

Session 7: 1:40pm-2:55pm

Chair: Su De

x

1:40pm-2:00pm

Working with sick children – looking after yourself

Suzanne Crowe 

2:00pm-2:20pm

Toward Precision Medicine for Head and Neck Lymphatic Malformations

Juliana Bonilla-Velez

2:20pm-2:55pm

Airway Panel

Moderator: 
Michelle Wyatt 

Panel:  
Marlene Soma, Steven Powell, Rania Mehanna, Ian Lilly 

2:55pm-3:25pm

Coffee and Browse Posters

x

3:25pm-3:45pm

Prize Giving 

Hasnaa Ismail-Koch, Mira de Kruijf, Kate Blackmore 

3:45pm-4:00pm

Presidential Handover and invitation to BAPO 2027 

Steven Powell 

With thanks to our supporters.

Gold Sponsors.

Sponsors.

BAPOJ Research Prize 2026

BAPOJ1: Developing novel materials for paediatric tracheostomy tube design
Josh Law; Jennifer Olsen; Jason Powell

BAPOJ2: Are sterile drapes and gowns necessary for all paediatric ENT operations? Assessing the exposure of bodily fluids during adenotonsillectomy procedures
Chee Yen Soon; Henry Dunne; Chong Yi Kang

BAPOJ3: Who Progresses? Phenotyping Long-Term Audiological Trajectories Following Newborn Hearing Screening
Chloe Swords; Mohammad Ghunaim; Chong Kang; Nico Jonas; Jessica Bewick

Pop-up Presentations Session 3

O3.1 Preliminary Safety and Efficacy of AK-OTOF Gene Therapy for Otoferlin Gene (OTOF)-mediated Hearing Loss
Eli Lilly and Company
Brian Lin; on behalf of the AK-OTOF-101 trial

O3.2 Paediatric Eustachian Tube Balloon Dilatation: The First UK Experience
Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, Liverpool, United Kingdom
Emma Hogg; Grace Khong; Sunil Sharma

O3.3 Patterns and Predictors of Hearing Aid Rejection in Paediatric Patients: A Single-Centre Experience
Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, Liverpool, United Kingdom
Dickson Dewantoro; Yeshua Mirani; Timothy Davies; Oliver Little; Sunil Sharma

O3.4 Beyond Drainage: Tympanic Membrane Perforation upon Presentation as a Major Risk Factor for Complications in Pediatric Mastoiditis
Shamir medical center, Zerifin, Israel
Ofer Israel; Itai Asher; Jacob Pitaro; Rona Bourla; Yael Garti; Haim Gavriel; Yuval Mizrakly

O3.5 Paediatric SENTIO™ Transcutaneous Bone Conduction Hearing Implant: Our Tertiary ENT Paediatric Experience
Alder Hey Children’s, Liverpool, United Kingdom
Emma Hogg; Dickson Dewantoro; Kristin Bryce; Timothy Davies; Oliver Little; Sujata De; Sunil Sharma

Pop-up Presentations Session 4

O4.1 Higher Revision Adenoidectomy Rates in Afro-Caribbean Children Compared with the General Paediatric Population: A Five-Year Tertiary Centre Review
Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust, Oxford, United Kingdom
Amna Qamar; Ilan Elango; Harrypal Panesar; Ciba Paul

O4.2 Should day-case adenotonsillectomy criteria be expanded to allow for the growing childhood obesity epidemic? A retrospective review of 99 children undergoing adenotonsillectomy with weight over 98th centile.
Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children, Belfast, United Kingdom
Aisling Clarke; Gavin Donaldson; Conor Jackson; Keith Trimble

O4.3 Paediatric ENT litigation in England: a retrospective analysis of NHS Resolution claims notified 2018–2023
University College London Hospital, London, United Kingdom
Foteini Stefania Koumpa; Talisa Ross; Annakan Navaratnam; Su De

O4.4 Does Clot Size Matter? Rethinking Anticoagulation Duration in Paediatric Otogenic Sinus Thrombosis
Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, Liverpool, United Kingdom
Sara Mahmood; Randa Ghazal-Asswad; Kristin Bryce; Sunil Sharma

O4.5 Do patients require ongoing medication for drooling despite salivary gland surgery?
Addenbrookes Hospital, Cambridge, United Kingdom
Mohammad Ghunaim; Chloe Swords; Chong Kang; Nico Jonas; Jessica Bewick

Pop-up Presentations Session 5

O5.1 Dynamic Four-Dimensional CT in the Evaluation of Paediatric Tracheobronchomalacia: A Ten-Year Single-Centre Retrospective Review
Great Ormond Street Hospital, London, United Kingdom
Sophie Bondje; Elizabeth Maughan; Colin Butler

O5.2 Microlaryngobronchoscopy in Children with Recurrent Croup: Are We Performing Too Many?
Cambridge University Hospital, Cambridge, United Kingdom; The University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan
Mohammad Ghunaim; Imogen Seago; Chloe Swords

O5.3 Cumulative corticosteroid exposure in paediatric subglottic stenosis
Addenbrookes Hospital, Cambridge, United Kingdom
Chloe Swords; Mohammad Ghunaim; Chong Kang; Nico Jonas; Jessica Bewick

O5.4 Transitioning adolescent tracheostomy patients to adult care: A national survey of current practice
Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom; University Hospital Wales, Cardiff, United Kingdom
Bay Hill; Yasmine Kamhieh; Julie Bickel; Andrew Hall

O5.5 Multidisciplinary Paediatric Airway Guide and Simulation Training
University Hospitals Sussex, Brighton, United Kingdom
Sarah Humphries; Isabella Atherley; Thomas Geyton

Pop-up Presentations Session 6

O6.1 Endoscopic vs External Paediatric DCR: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Sheffield, United Kingdom; Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, Liverpool, United Kingdom
Rohan Pinto; Grace Khong

O6.2 Paediatric one stop neck lump clinic: A pilot service evaluation
Sheffield Children’s Hospital, Sheffield, United Kingdom
Gyanesh Sethi; Nicola Stobbs; Christopher NG

O6.3 Predictors of Recurrence Following Nasal Dermoid Sinus Cysts Excision: A 13-Year Retrospective Cohort Study
Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, Liverpool, United Kingdom; Bolton NHS Foundation Trust, Bolton, United Kingdom
Arshad Zubair; Dillan Shetty; Ravi Sharma; Grace Khong

O6.4 DigiBel: A Pilot Evaluation of a Web-Based, Child-Friendly Audiometry App for Detecting Conductive Hearing Loss
Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, Norwich, United Kingdom; Cambridge University Hospital, Cambridge, United Kingdom
Rachael Collins; Tamsin Holland-Brown

O6.5 BapoGPT: Artificial Intelligence Versus ENT UK for Patient and Parent Information
Sheffield Teaching Hospitals, Sheffield, United Kingdom
Dalton Barham; William Greenough