We are the combination of four hospitals: the General Hospital, the Children’s Hospital, the Women’s Hospital and the Traumatology, Rehabilitation and Burns Hospital. We are part of the Vall d’Hebron Barcelona Hospital Campus: a world-leading health park where healthcare plays a crucial role.
Below we will list the departments and units that form part of Vall d’Hebron Hospital and the main diseases that we treat. We will also make recommendations based on advice backed up by scientific evidence that has been shown to be effective in guaranteeing well-being and quality of life.
Vols saber com serà la teva estada a l’Hospital Universitari Vall d’Hebron? Aquí trobaràs tota la informació.
The Immunology Department performs routine and complex immune system diagnostic tests, assessing and interpreting them in a clinical context. For complex testing, we act as a reference laboratory for other Catalan Health Institute centres when these centres request our help.
Most healthcare activities consist of diagnostic testing, and assessment and opinion, where applicable. Within this practice, we provide direct and continuous advice to clinical practitioners, by email, telephone as well as in person. We also design and improve diagnostic tests and protocols that allow diagnostic methods to be continually updated and bring clinical services into line with clinical requirements. Teaching and research are both crucial for the work that we are doing.
The Immunology Department is responsible for diagnosis, teaching and research in Immunology at Vall d'Hebron University Hospital (HUVH) and its catchment area. The key processes it performs are: Immunology diagnostic tests and in the design of diagnostic protocols, clinical immunology outpatient clinic, specialised teaching of immunology, pre- and postgraduate, and research, development and innovation through their own projects in the fields of primary immunodeficiencies, autoimmunity and consulting in the design and execution of the research projects of other groups in the Hospital.
Immunology training itinerary
The Immunology Department is part of VH Clinical Laboratories, some of the largest in Europe with more than 16,000,000 determinations / year. It is located in new premises (2014) on the ground floor of the VH Clinical Laboratories building (approximately 400 m2). It is organised by processes under the framework of the ISO 9001 quality management system: Autoimmunity, Hypersensitivity, Cellular Immunology, Immunogenetics (HLA and disease), Immunogenetics (Study of primary immunodeficiencies), Immunoproteins, Monitoring of immunotherapy and Clinical Immunology Clinic. It actively participates in the clinical processes of the Hospital on multidisciplinary case management committees for amyloidosis, multiple myeloma, primary immunodeficiencies and complex glomerulopathies.
It also works bilaterally with other departments in the clinical processes relating to autoimmunity, allergies, reproductive immunology and cancer. The department is part of the Transversal Immunology Programme on the Vall d'Hebron Campus, which facilitates collaboration with other professionals working on immunology issues in other research groups. This enables the department to have 3 different programmes of sessions covering:
The department comprises 7 immunology specialists, 2 with a more clinical profile and 5 with a laboratory profile, as well as a molecular immunology expert. There is also one supervisor and 12 technicians.1 administrator. 1 resident per year (currently 3) and an immunology pre-doc.
There are professionals linked to the immunology department who are involved in different processes:
The Cerebrospinal Fluid Laboratory is the result of a collaboration agreement with VHIR-CEMCAT (Multiple Sclerosis Centre of Catalonia), to carry out complex care tests and implement new biomarkers in multiple sclerosis in healthcare practice (translational research). This process involves a principal researcher from the Clinical Neuroimmunology research group and a technician.
The allergy unit, in conjunction with the immunology department, is actively involved in drawing up reports interpreting the results of molecular allergy testing of patients from other centres. This added value means the department is even more useful for customers.
To improve the coordination of the paediatric primary immunodeficiency process. The Immunology Department shares a biologist with the Paediatric Infectious Pathology and Immunodeficiency Unit. This biologist takes on tasks shared between the clinic and the lab.
There is collaboration with the Translational Bioinformatics Research Group to determine the pathogenicity of gene mutations in patients with primary immunodeficiency. The complementary nature of immunological, genetic, bioinformatic and functional studies of proteins allows a personalised diagnosis of patients with primary immunodeficiency, which in turn helps find treatments that are more appropriate to the molecular pathology in question.
The Immunological Regulation and Immunotherapy Research Group provides methodological and technical support to the Department of Immunology in applied research subjects. The group leader is currently co-IP on a research project (on Family Haemophagocytic Syndrome) and this collaboration will be included as part of a resident’s thesis.
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