Dr David Watchorn won a scholarship to the School of Medicine in University College Dublin, graduating in 2009. He went on to train in respiratory medicine in Dublin’s principal teaching hospitals and was dually certified as a specialist in Respiratory Medicine and General Internal Medicine in 2018. 

Dr Watchorn first joined Royal Brompton Hospital medical staff as a post-CCT fellow in 2019. Having subsequently held positions as acting consultant at St George’s Hospital and at Royal Brompton, he was appointed to a substantive consultant post in March 2022.

Areas of expertise

Dr Watchorn’s practice includes the management of difficult-to-treat and severe asthma, as well as related conditions (including eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis and allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis). In this role, he assesses, as part of a multidisciplinary team, the eligibility of asthmatic patients for biologic treatments, as part of Royal Brompton Hospital’s role as an NHSE commissioned Severe Asthma Specialist Centre.

Dr Watchorn is also part of the Upper Airway multidisciplinary team managing chronic refractory cough, large airways collapse, running specialist clinics for these conditions as well as for unexplained breathlessness.

Teaching

Dr Watchorn has taught both undergraduate and postgraduate medicine, including as a Special Lecturer and Clinical Tutor at University College Dublin, and as an ERS-designated mentor for the HERMES exam for UK-based trainees. He has written questions for postgraduate membership, written examinations, and has examined at postgraduate membership clinical examinations. Dr Watchorn currently serves as both clinical and educational supervisor for trainee doctors at Royal Brompton Hospital. 

Research Interests

Dr Watchorn was awarded his MD for research into the modulation of inflammatory mediators associated with GLP-1 therapy in obese asthma. He won grant funding for this research, which has been presented at major international conferences and published in high impact scientific journals. He maintains an active role in clinical research relevant to his areas of clinical practice.

Publications

•  Watchorn D, Menzies-Gow A; Investigational approaches for unmet need in severe asthma: Expert Rev Respir Med. 2022 Jun;16(6):661-678
• Watchorn D, Holguin F; The use of biologics in personalized asthma care. Expert Rev Clin Immunol. 2021 Dec;17(12):1301-1309
• Watchorn D, Menzies-Gow A; Oral corticosteroid stewardship for asthma: Time to move from theory to routine clinical practice. Respirology 2021;26(12):1094-5
• Watchorn D, O’Shea D, Butler MW. “Asthma Exacerbations in Individuals on Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonists for Type 2 Diabetes”. American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. 2021;203(7):923-4.
• Watchorn DC, Madden A, O’Shea D, Dunican EM, Butler MW. "Weight Loss in Individuals with Obesity and Asthma" Annals of the American Thoracic Society , Vol. 16, No. 7 | Jul 01, 2019
• Dunican EM, Watchorn DC, Fahy JV, Autopsy and Imaging Studies of Mucus in Asthma. Lessons Learned about Disease Mechanisms and the Role of Mucus in Airflow Obstruction 15(3) Ann Am Thorac Soc 2018 (Nov) 15(Supplement_3):S184-S191 

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  Private patient referral

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