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.
The Diagnostic Imaging Area is a cross-cutting knowledge area within the organisational model of Vall d’Hebron University Hospital, essential for diagnosis, follow-up and clinical decision-making across all care specialties. It supports the entire hospital campus through advanced imaging techniques, working in coordinated integration with the other knowledge areas to provide a rapid, accurate response aligned with clinical needs.
This area brings together diagnostic imaging services and associated disciplines, including medical physics and radiation protection, under shared criteria of quality, safety and innovation. The knowledge area model facilitates resource optimisation, protocol harmonisation and the incorporation of new technologies, contributing to more efficient, safer and patient-centred care.
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Healthcare Social Work
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Physics and Radiation Protection
Radiodiagnosis
The Treatment Area is a cross-cutting knowledge area within the organisational model of Vall d’Hebron University Hospital, playing a central role in the therapeutic management of patients throughout the entire care process. This area focuses particularly on medication and pharmacological treatment, supporting clinical teams in therapeutic decision-making and ensuring safe, effective and evidence-based use.
The area brings together specialised disciplines and units that work in a coordinated manner with all care areas across the campus, with a holistic view of the patient. The knowledge area model makes it possible to optimise resources, harmonise therapeutic criteria and promote quality, safety and innovation in treatments, contributing to more integrated, efficient care focused on achieving the best health outcomes.
Clinical Pharmacology
Pharmacy
Clinical laboratories are a key cross-cutting knowledge area within the organisational model of Vall d’Hebron University Hospital. They provide diagnostic and follow-up support to all clinical specialties and to all hospitals across the Campus, working in close coordination with the other knowledge areas. Their activity is essential for clinical decision-making in both acute and chronic processes, ensuring a rapid, reliable response aligned with the needs of healthcare teams.
This area brings together the full range of laboratory disciplines and units, which work in a coordinated manner with a holistic view of the patient and the care process. The knowledge area model makes it possible to optimise resources, share expertise and ensure common standards of quality, innovation and safety, contributing to more efficient, integrated and knowledge-based care.
Biochemistry
Clinical and Molecular Genetics
Immunology
Microbiology
Pathological Anatomy
The Surgical Area of Vall d’Hebron University Hospital consists of three distinct blocks: the General Hospital, Traumatology, Rehabilitation and Burn Unit, and the Children’s Hospital, with more than 20 high-complexity operating rooms. The General Block features hybrid operating rooms for endovascular and neurosurgery procedures, as well as three Da Vinci robotic operating rooms, enabling minimally invasive surgeries with maximum precision and safety. The multidisciplinary team includes nursing, anesthesia, critical care professionals, perfusionists, and other technical staff, with active participation in transplant programs.
The Children’s Block is adapted to the needs of pediatric patients, providing both technical and emotional care that prioritizes trust and well-being. Advanced technologies used in adult surgery have also been implemented in the pediatric setting, enhancing surgical quality. The area promotes humanization projects, such as family accompaniment to the operating room, music therapy during procedures, and the Bona Nit Vall d’Hebron program for improved postoperative rest. With this comprehensive and innovative approach, the Surgical Area ensures excellent, patient-centered care.
Anaesthesia, Resuscitation and Pain Management
Transplant Coordination
The Emergency Department of Vall d’Hebron University Hospital is made up of a multidisciplinary team of professionals who care for people requiring an immediate medical response. It is distributed across different hospitals according to specialty: at the Hospital of Traumatology, Rehabilitation, and Burns, emergencies related to these areas are treated; at the Children’s Hospital and the Women’s Hospital, pediatric and gynecological emergencies are managed; and at the General Hospital, adult emergencies are handled. Care is provided according to the severity level of the patient, with specific areas for primary care, observation, and follow-up. In addition, continuity of care is promoted both within the hospital and in the community, fostering teamwork and the professional development of specialists.
The Emergency Department works to improve patient care and ensure continuity of care. Innovative projects have been implemented, such as the frailty program for chronic patients, with a specialized geriatrics team to reduce emergency stay and optimize patient management. The handling of critical patients has also been strengthened with improved protocols and close collaboration with the medical emergency system and specialized teams, such as those for ECMO resuscitation and transplants. All of this contributes to providing faster, safer, and more personalized care for each patient.
General Emergencies
Obstetric and Gynaecological Emergency Care
Paediatric Emergency Care
Traumatology, Rehabilitation and Burns Emergency Care
The immune system is a defense and adaptation system of our body in relation to the external environment. It allows us to distinguish what we accept and what we do not from everything around us—foods, germs, chemical substances, our own aged or damaged cells, etc.—in order to preserve good health. All disorders caused by either an excess or a deficiency of this function are included within these diseases.
It has two fundamental components: innate immunity, which depends on the genes of our species and does not need to be trained to function, and acquired immunity, which depends on the learning process of our body through contact with infections, foods, or chemical substances. Both work together in close collaboration and in a delicate balance.
Immune System Diseases
There are immune system disorders caused by:
a) Loss of function: Primary immunodeficiencies, acquired immunodeficiencies.
b) Excess of function: Autoimmune diseases, in which the body, through an excessive exercise of its defenses, attacks itself due to the loss of a fundamental function: self-tolerance. This means that under normal conditions, a body’s own cell will never attack another of its own cells.
In the first case, immunodeficiencies are indicated by the repeated occurrence of infections, which is the key sign for detection. These can appear early in life due to a genetic alteration, in adulthood as a result of treatments for other diseases such as cancer, or can be acquired through viral infections, with HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) being one of the most significant.
In the second case, autoimmune diseases are suggested by the appearance of inflammation without apparent cause in joints, lungs, kidneys, liver, or other organs.
Symptoms primarily depend on whether they are due to a loss of function (recurrent infections) or an excess of function (inflammatory disease affecting one or more organs).
Immune diseases can affect anyone throughout their life. In general, immunodeficiencies are more common in early childhood, while autoimmune diseases usually affect young adults, more frequently women.
The body’s defense capacity is assessed in two ways:
Basal state: in the patient’s ordinary condition.
After stimulation: the immune cells are stimulated in the laboratory to evaluate their function.
For autoimmune diseases, factors present in the blood are analyzed; elevated levels may indicate abnormal activity against the body itself.
Diagnostic evaluations include:a) Study of innate immunityb) Study of acquired immunityc) Study of the functional capacity of the immune systemd) Study of factors characterizing autoimmune disease
Assessing immune competence can be done in several ways:
Detection and counting of immune cells, specifically lymphocytes.
Laboratory stimulation of lymphocytes to test their functionality.
Analysis of blood or biopsy samples for factors causing self-attack, such as autoantibodies (defense proteins with abnormal self-aggressive function).
Study of elevated cellular messengers indicating the activity of these cells against the body.
Immunodeficiency: restoration of the immune system’s functional capacity.
Autoimmunity: modulation or inhibition of the immune system’s self-aggressive capacity.
Laboratory tests to assess immune system functionality are standard. Genetic tests are also used to assist in diagnosis.
In addition to general recommendations for a healthy diet, regular exercise, and abstaining from smoking, adherence to the childhood vaccination schedule is essential. Vaccinations not only protect against specific infections but also help improve overall immune defense.
Legionellosis is a disease caused by the bacterium Legionella pneumophila, which typically lives in contaminated water systems, such as water pipes, ponds, cooling towers, swimming pools, or hot tubs.
It is acquired through inhalation after contact with contaminated water, either by bathing in it or being in nearby areas, as the bacteria can spread from the water into the surrounding air.
It generally causes a lung infection in the form of pneumonia, which, if not diagnosed and treated promptly, can become severe and life-threatening.
Legionellosis produces the typical symptoms of pneumonia—fever, chest pain, and difficulty breathing—along with severe muscle pain and a significant overall decline in health, with pronounced malaise.
Legionellosis can affect anyone who comes into contact with the causative bacterium, but it is more common in elderly or immunocompromised individuals who have been exposed to contaminated water or inhaled vapor from such water.
Diagnosis is made by detecting the bacterium or antibodies against it in the blood, once suspected based on clinical characteristics (age of onset, fever, severe general malaise, muscle pain) or radiographic findings (pneumonia affecting large areas of the lungs). Isolation of the bacterium is relatively recent, as it requires special culture media.
In fact, Legionella was not identified as a cause of pulmonary disease until 1976, during a pneumonia outbreak at an American Legion convention in Philadelphia, from which it gets its name.
Legionellosis responds well to specific antibiotic treatment. Early initiation of treatment is very important.
Chest X-ray, blood tests for antibodies against Legionella, and specific cultures to identify the bacterium.
Epidemiological surveillance of detected cases (water pipes, air-conditioning towers, pools, or hot tubs involved) is crucial to disinfect them.
When a case of legionellosis is detected, public health authorities conduct an investigation to locate and eliminate the source.
Legionella does not tolerate high temperatures well and is usually eliminated by temporarily raising the temperature of the water systems. To ensure the bacterium is fully eradicated, these measures should be carried out by specialized professionals.
People who suffer from Fabry disease have a congenital deficiency or complete absence of alpha-galactosidase A. As a result, a fatty substance (glycolipid) that would normally be broken down by this enzyme accumulates in the lysosomes of the cells. The gene responsible for Fabry disease (GLA) is located on the X chromosome, so the disease is transmitted via the affected X chromosome from the father or mother.
When the father (XY) is affected, he transmits his single X chromosome to his daughters but not to his sons, who receive the Y chromosome from the father. When the mother (XX) is affected, having two X chromosomes and only one affected, she has a 50% chance of transmitting either the healthy or the altered X chromosome to both daughters and sons. Women, having two X chromosomes, can have the non-affected chromosome partially compensate for the affected one. Therefore, they may present various clinical forms, ranging from mild to severe, and generally with later onset than in men. Men with classic mutations of Fabry disease usually present severe forms, with onset even in childhood or adolescence.
Approximately 1,000 different variants of the affected GLA gene are known. This explains why Fabry disease can manifest in diverse forms depending on the type of mutation (classic forms or late-onset/atypical forms).
It is a multisystemic disease (affecting the kidney, heart, nervous system, skin, eyes, among others) that requires multidisciplinary care. Multiple specialists need to work together.
It generally affects men more severely than women. X-linked inheritance means there are almost twice as many affected women as men, but variability in expression causes many women to remain undiagnosed. Classic mutations start in childhood, and boys may present symptoms as early as 3–4 years old, depending on the mutation type.
Early diagnosis can be made through a blood test to determine enzymatic activity and genetic testing.
Depending on which organ is affected, Fabry disease may appear as different clinical problems. For kidney issues, the patient sees a nephrologist. Patients with arrhythmias may see a cardiologist. Pain may require a neurologist or rheumatologist, and skin lesions a dermatologist.
The disease usually begins with hand and foot pain, abdominal pain, fatigue, some skin lesions, and later kidney involvement in adolescence (albumin in the urine). It can also cause cardiomyopathy or left ventricular hypertrophy, detectable via echocardiography.
Symptoms appear progressively. Healthcare professionals must be aware of this possibility, detect it, and diagnose it in time.
Fabry disease can be treated symptomatically with medications for pain, proteinuria, or arrhythmias. Additionally, there are specific treatments.
Since 2001, enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) has been available. This therapy addresses the deficient enzyme production. Through genetic engineering, the enzyme can be produced in the lab and administered intravenously every 15 days. The protein enters the cell and acts for several days, but because the body does not produce it, supplementation must continue.
ERT reduces the occurrence of severe complications and improves survival by an average of 20 years. For optimal therapeutic benefit, treatment should start before irreversible tissue damage occurs.
Recently, another treatment alternative has emerged: pharmacological chaperone therapy. If the gene mutation produces no protein, this therapy cannot be used. If a defective protein is produced, the molecule binds to it, modifying its structure and improving its activity in genetically responsive variants (20–30%).
At Vall d’Hebron Research Institute, studies are underway to improve intracellular transport and drug efficacy using nanoparticles, which facilitate delivery of the enzyme precisely to the required site.
Another treatment in development is gene therapy, which involves introducing a normal gene into the cell via a vector so that the cell can produce the enzyme normally and permanently. If successful, this would be a curative treatment.
Expanded genetic testing helps study the family and detect affected individuals in early stages. Screening at-risk populations such as people with unexplained kidney disease, unexplained myocardial hypertrophy, early stroke, or sudden hearing loss is essential. Specialists in nephrology, cardiology, neurology, dermatology, ophthalmology, ENT, and other fields must consider Fabry disease, along with family history and clinical records, to detect it early and achieve optimal benefits.
Fibromyalgia is a condition that is part of the so-called central sensitization syndromes. There is a hyperexcitation of the central nervous system with a lowered pain threshold, which causes pain to appear earlier and become more intense, longer-lasting, and more widespread.
Generalized pain is often accompanied by other symptoms, such as fatigue or sleep disturbances. It is diagnosed based on criteria that rely on symptoms and physical examination. There is no specific medical test.
Fibromyalgia is a common condition, affecting 2.4 % of the general population, and is part of the so-called central sensitization syndromes. It is mainly characterized by widespread pain. There is hyperexcitation of the central nervous system with a lowered pain threshold, causing pain to appear earlier and be more intense, longer-lasting, and more diffuse. There is an exaggerated response to painful stimuli (hyperalgesia) and pain in response to normally non-painful stimuli (allodynia). Its cause is unknown, but sometimes there are clear triggers such as physical or emotional trauma or infections.
It is a chronic condition with a fluctuating course, with periods of improvement and others of clinical worsening.
The main symptom is widespread pain, but it is often accompanied by other symptoms such as fatigue, insomnia, tingling in the limbs, headache, dizziness, memory and concentration problems, anxiety, or depression.
It usually affects middle-aged women, with a peak between 40 and 49 years, but it can affect people of all sexes and ages.
Diagnosis is based on criteria that rely on the patient’s clinical presentation, according to the presence of characteristic symptoms and signs.
There is no specific medical test.
Laboratory tests and sometimes imaging studies help rule out other conditions that are often concomitant (present at the same time).
Treatment of fibromyalgia should be based on four pillars: patient education (general information about the disease and attitude toward it), physical exercise according to tolerance, cognitive-behavioral therapy if appropriate, and pharmacological treatment.
1. Patient education and attitude toward the disease
The disease should be explained, providing general advice to improve well-being.
2. Physical exercise according to tolerance
There is evidence of its effectiveness on pain, well-being, and physical function.
It is recommended to start with low-impact aerobic exercise: walking, swimming, stationary cycling, aquagym, tai chi, or pilates.
Exercise should be performed regularly and progressively.
It is recommended to do 20–50 minutes per session, at least three days per week.
In cases of lower tolerance, start with ten minutes per session, four to six days per week, and gradually increase duration, frequency, and intensity, if possible, each month.
3. Cognitive-behavioral therapy
Provided by clinical psychologists in cases of accompanying anxiety or depression.
Although fibromyalgia is not a psychological condition, anxiety and depression can trigger and perpetuate symptoms.
4. Pharmacological treatment
Can help manage some symptoms such as pain, fatigue, or sleep disturbances, although its effectiveness is limited in a large percentage of patients.
Currently, analgesics, muscle relaxants, anticonvulsants, and some groups of antidepressants are used.
The risk/benefit and potential side effects of any medications should be carefully evaluated.
A healthy lifestyle is recommended, maintaining weight with aerobic exercise according to tolerance and a balanced diet, organizing and prioritizing daily tasks with short breaks, and avoiding physically and emotionally stressful activities.
Health advice for people with fibromyalgia is provided.
Treatment with the drug levodopa allows many of the functions deteriorated or lost due to the disease to be restored. It is the most effective treatment, but it also has limitations: as the disease progresses, its effect becomes transient and fluctuates. When the medication is working, the patient feels well, in the "On" state. When the effect wears off, the patient enters the "Off" state, and symptoms reappear.
To improve the effects of levodopa, different routes of administration have been investigated (inhaled, transdermal, intrajejunal) and various pharmaceutical formulations have been developed. Administration via gastrostomy with a levodopa gel infusion has been particularly successful.
There are also other pharmacological and neurosurgical treatments, such as electrical stimulation of specific brain areas, which provide good results. Research is ongoing to target the diseased brain using stereotactic ultrasound, avoiding trepanation and traditional surgery.
New avenues of research have opened in Parkinson’s disease to determine its causes, prevent its progression, and maximize symptom management.
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