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.
Patients are the centre and the core of our system. We are professionals committed to quality care and our organizational structure breaks down the traditional boundaries between departments and professional groups, with an exclusive model of knowledge areas.
Would you like to know what your stay at Vall d'Hebron will be like? Here you will find all the information.
The commitment of Vall d'Hebron University Hospital to innovation allows us to be at the forefront of medicine, providing first class care adapted to the changing needs of each patient.
Burns are injuries caused by contact with heat, electricity, chemicals, or radiation. Acting quickly, moving away from the source, and cooling the affected area are essential to limit tissue damage and prevent complications.
In the kitchen
In the bathroom
Rest of the house
If the injuries only cover a small area, you should first go to a health centre. For more widespread injuries, go to the hospital accident and emergency department or 112 emergency services.
Kidney diseases affect how the kidneys function, as they are responsible for filtering blood and removing waste. Maintaining a balanced diet, proper hydration, and healthy habits is key to preserving kidney function and preventing complications.
The kidneys benefit from a healthy diet, from a relatively high intake of water and from avoiding tobacco. Regular bowel and bladder movements are also essential. Constipation and delaying urination are both damaging to kidney function.
Plain water without anything dissolved in it is necessary for good kidney function, apart from liquids such as milk and broth and drinks such as tea and coffee. The amount of urine a healthy person produces varies depending on how much water they drink, the air temperature, whether they are at rest or doing exercise, etc. A healthy adult would normally required 1 to 2 litres per day. Kidney function does not necessarily improve if excessive water is consumed.
Exercise and a diet rich in fibre encourage healthy bowel and bladder movements and improve kidney function. In terms of related conditions, often diabetes, good metabolic control of the diabetes is essential to preserve good kidney function. Controlling arterial pressure, which often has an unknown cause, is also vital to maintain good kidney function.
Constipation is a very common problem in childhood. It occurs when stools are very hard, dry, too large or very difficult to pass. It is also considered constipation when the child has passed stools less than three times in a week. Normally, this problem can be resolved by eating properly and exercising frequently.
Constipation can happen for different reasons:
Less commonly, constipation is a symptom of another illness. If you suspect this may be the case, you should see a doctor.
The head paediatrician will monitor children with constipation. There are, however, situations in which you should go to A&E.
Children with stomach pain may experience vomiting, diarrhea, and general discomfort. These guidelines help prevent dehydration, ensure proper rehydration, recognize warning signs, and provide appropriate family support.
Upset stomach appears when viruses, parasites or bacteria damage the cells in the mucous membrane in the intestine. Normally, this membrane absorbs fluids, but when it is damaged it can no longer do it as effectively. The body therefore loses fluid through vomiting and diarrhoea.
Diarrhoea causes loss of fluids and salts. Children are more vulnerable to loss of fluids than adults; as they are smaller, they become dehydrated more quickly. Vomiting may lead to difficulties retaining the fluids consumed. Smaller children may deteriorate if they lose more fluids than they take in. This is why it is important that they drink from the onset of the stomach infection.
Vomiting and diarrhoea are the most common symptoms of upset stomach caused by a virus in children. The illness almost always cures itself and disappears in a couple of days. It is very important for children to drink fluids, especially if they have diarrhoea, which is particularly relevant in children under one year.
When children are suffering from upset stomach they may present different symptoms, including: vomiting, diarrhoea, discomfort, tummy ache, fever, tiredness and loss of appetite.
The symptoms normally appear all of a sudden, a couple of days after being infected, and disappear after a few days. Diarrhoea may last up to a week. Upset stomach is more common in winter, when children spend longer indoors. Although it may also be caused by bacteria, parasites or viruses, eating food that has gone off or travelling abroad.
You should go to your doctor or call 061 CatSalut Respon (Catalan Health Service care line) in the following cases:
You should seek urgent medical assistance if the child has diarrhoea, vomiting and any of these symptoms:
Children need fluids. They need to drink often. They can drink a bit at a time, in small quantities given to them with a spoon or bottle. Offer them water occasionally. It is important that they drink a bit at time, as if they drink too much in one go they may start vomiting again.
Avoid sweet drinks such as fizzy drinks or strong juices. They should also avoid diet drinks, as although they do not contain sugar, they may contain other products that cause diarrhoea. Infants may drink what they like, the most important thing is that they drink fluids.
If the child does not want to drink, try giving them ice lollies. You still need to offer them fluids. Even if they are eating ice lollies, they need to drink fluids to rehydrate themselves.
If the child is breast or bottle feeding, they should keep doing so, only more often, even if they vomit. If they do not want to breastfeed, you can also extract milk and feed them from a spoon.
A special syringe for medication is a good solution for oral rehydration. Make sure the liquid does not land directly on their palate, as this may cause nausea.
If vomiting is continuous, the child needs to drink two spoonfuls of liquid every five minutes, which is the equivalent of about 10 ml. An infant needs approximately 1 litre of liquid every 24 hours.
Oral solutions contain the amounts of salts and sugars required to help restore the body’s water balance. When children vomit often and have serious diarrhoea, it is a good idea for them to drink oral rehydration solutions. The infant may not want to drink the solution. If that is the case, try adding sugar.
You can find these solutions in pharmacies.
In most cases, it may be that the child stops vomiting but the diarrhoea continues for a while. Breastfeeding babies can continue feeding and babies drinking from a bottle can eat different types of preparations: rice, corn, formula milk, etc. depending on their age. You can find these preparations in pharmacies. You should start with small quantities.
If the child is older than six months, they may eat carrot soup.
When they are ready to start eating, it is better for them to eat normal foods. It is better to start with small quantities of food and avoid fruits and foods that have a fibre content.
If the child starts vomiting again and is more tired than usual, does not have enough energy to play or loses their interest in their surroundings, see a paediatrician.
Often, upset stomach is caused by a viral infection that is highly contagious. It is normal for people in the same family to be ill at the same time.
To prevent it from being passed on:
It is advisable for the child not to go back to nursery or school until two days after the symptoms disappear.
Gastroenteritis is an infection that causes diarrhoea, an increase in loose stools. It is normally accompanied by vomiting, fever and stomach ache.
Every time the child passes diarrhoea or vomits they lose fluids, and they need to replace them orally (by drinking). To achieve this, electrolyte solutions can be used.
If the child is vomiting, they will need to drink the solution bit by bit (one teaspoon every 5 minutes). If they are not vomiting, increase the amount gradually.
When they are not vomiting, offer them small amounts of food. Never force them to eat and make sure they drink plenty of fluids between meals.
The child should not be fasting. Offer them food without forcing them to eat. Infants with gastroenteritis normally lose some of their appetite. If they are breastfeeding, the number of feeds should be increased. Milk bottles should continue to be given in the normal doses, they should not be diluted.
A dry diet is not necessary, soft foods can be eaten if preferred. The foods that tend to be tolerated better are cereals (rice and wheat), potatoes, bread, lean meat, vegetables, fish, yoghurt and fruit. Avoid foods that are difficult to digest, with lots of fat and sugar.
To recover lost fluids, do not use homemade solutions or commercial drinks. Solutions prepared specifically for rehydration are recommended.
Do not administer medications for vomiting or diarrhoea without consulting a paediatrician.
Guidelines for identifying and managing fever in children, including proper temperature measurement, correct use of antipyretics, hydration, child comfort, monitoring warning signs, and when to consult a pediatrician or seek urgent care.
Fever is not an illness in itself, but the body’s defence response. Treatments for fever serve to alleviate the symptoms.
To find out if you have a fever, always use a thermometer. A digital thermometer is best. To use it, place it in the ill person’s armpit for approximately two minutes, until it beeps. In breastfeeding babies it can be placed in the rectum, but bear in mind that if done this way a fever is anything above 38°C.
If, despite having applied the above measures, the fever remains higher than 38ºC and the child is generally unwell, antipyretics may be administered.
The medication used most often is paracetamol or ibuprofen. Both can be administered in drops or syrup.
In summary, when we have an infection and the body raises our temperature, it causes what is known as a fever. Antipyretics do not cure the infection, but they can alleviate the symptoms.
Meningococcal disease (meningitis) is a serious infectious illness caused by a bacterium called “meningococcus”, which is transmitted through pharyngeal and nasal secretions.
The risk of contracting meningitis increases if you come into close contact with someone who has it (if you sleep in the same room, live in the same house, kiss on the cheek, etc.), but there is no need to disinfect objects or areas because meningococcus bacteria do not live long outside of the human body.
The measures to prevent this illness are:
With meningitis, the appropriate measure is to administer antibiotics to the family and other people who live with the affected person.
If the illness was caused by meningococcal group B, the only preventive measure, and the most common in Spain, is chemoprophylaxis, which aims to eliminate the microorganism from the pharynx. This stops it from spreading, in the space of a few days, between the people who have taken the medication.
If the illness was caused by meningococcal group C, as well as administering chemoprophylaxis, people close to the affected person will be vaccinated if they have not already been so.
If there is evidence that someone has had intimate contact with the patient in the ten days prior to the occurrence of the disease, and they have not been administered chemoprophylaxis, healthcare staff must be informed.
Tuberculosis can only be cured with a correctly taken combination of antibiotics over several months. Following medical instructions and detecting potential side effects early are essential to ensure recovery and prevent relapse or transmission.
Currently, tuberculosis (TB) drugs are safe and effective, and the majority of people take them without any problems. In some cases side effects may appear, so it is important to follow the treatment plan under supervision and see a doctor in case of doubt.
Once treatment begins, and to make sure it has the desired result, follow the instructions below:
Urine, faeces, sweat and tears may be red/orange in colour. This change is normal and will disappear when the treatment comes to an end.
CDC (in Spanish)
Glomerular diseases can severely impact kidney function and lead to chronic renal failure. Prevention, medical follow-up, healthy lifestyle habits, dietary adjustments, and adherence to treatment help slow disease progression and improve quality of life.
On the one hand, the function of the kidneys is to eliminate impurities from the body through the urine, and regulate the amount of liquid and chemical elements that we need, such as sodium, potassium, phosphorus or calcium.
On the other hand, the kidneys also help in regulating blood pressure by activating vitamin D, which is required to maintain healthy bones, and producing erythropoietin, which is required to produce red blood cells in the bone marrow.
When the kidneys do not work properly, the impurities we generate and the water that the kidneys cannot eliminate accumulates in the blood and the tissues, and this causes major disruptions to the patient’s general health, fluid retention and hypertension. They are also unable to properly get rid of some medications we take, which can accumulated in the body, increasing the risk of side effects.
As the kidneys are unable to help make vitamin D, or to retain phosphorous, the bones are weakened. The kidneys are also unable to produce erythropoietin and therefore anaemia appears.
The main types of renal replacement therapy are:
Where patients will not benefit from renal replacement therapy, conservative treatment will be carried out, aimed at controlling the different disorders and symptoms that appear during evolution of the illness.
The majority of cases of glomerulonephritis cannot be prevented, although a healthy lifestyle is advised, as promoted by the Spanish National Health System:
In addition, the application of dietary and pharmacological measures can help prevent or decrease the progression of the illness:
Maintain a balanced diet and limit:
Salt
As substitutes, the following items can be used to eliminate or reduce consumption:
Potassium
Part of the potassium in food can be removed by:
Proteins
Although proteins are required for repairing and creating cells and tissues, as well as for the proper functioning of the immune system:
Fluids
Fluid intake should be adjusted to each particular case:
Educating patients with resistant osteoarticular infections is key to avoiding contamination of utensils and possible complications resulting from the infection. Healthcare professionals will therefore emphasise the importance of hygiene in the infected area and will give instructions on dressing the area (if required) and on taking medication correctly for the duration prescribed.
When the patient is discharged, nursing staff will give them all the support and information they need to be able to look after the wound themselves. Most patients will be fitted with an external fixator that needs daily care, so healthcare staff will emphasise the importance of hygiene in the affected area, which should be cleaned daily and the correct dressing applied.
If patients are not independent and do not have a relative or carer to look after them, the local health authority will be contacted (through the PREALT discharge preparation unit), so that they may be provided with nursing care. If patients are being treated with intravenous medication, the Hospital at Home Unit will be contacted to follow up and provide the relevant treatment.
It is also necessary to explain the importance of taking the medication prescribed. On being discharged, most patients will receive long-term oral antibiotics (prescribed by the Infectious Diseases Unit) and they are reminded of the importance of maintaining a fixed schedule and not forgetting to take their medication.
They are also reminded of the need to maintain healthy habits, such as:
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