Prematurity epigenome and proteome as a clue for prediction of prematurity complications, Polsko-Amerykański Instytut Pediatrii - Oddział Patologii i Intensywnej Opieki Noworodka

Project promotor

Jagiellonian University

Polish-American Institute of Pediatrics
Chair of Pediatrics
Faculty of Medicine

Chair: Professor Przemko Kwinta, MD, PhD

The Chair of Pediatrics is among the leading Chairs of Jagiellonian University Medical College. It continues the traditions of the first in Poland Department of Pediatrics established in 1864 by Professor Leon Jakubowski. At present, the Chair consists of the Department of Pediatrics, Department of Pediatric Nephrology, Department of Pediatric and Adolescent Endocrinology and Division of Clinical Genetics.

The planned study shall be implemented in two units belonging to the Chair of Pediatrics: Department of Pediatrics and Division of Clinical Genetics.

One of the main foci of interest and the activities of the Department of Pediatrics is therapeutic management of severely ill newborns carried out at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. NICU is a tertiary level care unit, the main goal of which is treatment of newborns with life-threatening conditions. The unit chiefly manages preterm neonates, newborns with low and very low birth weight and newborns that require mechanical ventilation. In the majority of instances, therapeutic methods available at the unit are not be available in other hospitals in the region and represent the only chance for severely ill children. The unit has 30 intensive care beds with appropriate equipment allowing for vital signs monitoring, assisted ventilation and parenteral nutrition, The patients are cared for by a team of highly-qualified physicians-specialists in neonatology and pediatrics, as well as nurses, what allows for providing specialist treatment for any newborn regardless of the complexity of its medical problems, degree of maturity, body mass or other concomitant disturbances (metabolic, genetic). Vast majority members of the medical and nursing team have more than 10-year experience in working at the unit and have been trained in renowned neonatologic wards in the United States and Europe. Every day, more than 25 physicians, nurses and rehabilitation specialists are busy caring for the newborns. The team also includes dietitians and pharmacists.

Each year, NICU admits approximately 450 newborns. The largest group of patients (approximately 150) consists of preterm infants, followed by infants with respiratory problems, congenital defects, metabolic diseases or genetic abnormalities, perinatal infections and neurological conditions.

An element of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit activity is a neonatal transport service, with critically ill neonates being brought to NICU from regional hospitals. The Neonatal Transport Team members, both physicians and nurses, normally work at NICU, so specialist care is provided already at the moment a newborn is picked up at a regional center. The team collaborates with 26 hospitals situated in the region and provides transfer services to more than 350 neonates per year. Specialist equipment of the ambulance combined with experience of the team allows for transporting extremely ill or extremely immature infants, the latter with birth body weight of less than 500 g. It should be emphasized that collaboration with regional hospitals is not limited to neonatal transport only. The Outpatient Department of Neonatal Pathology and Development is an inherent element of the Chair of Pediatrics; here, all needy children, not only those discharged from our NICU, are followed-up by pediatricians, ophthalmologists and neurologists. The Outpatient Department maintains steady collaboration with an anthropologist, psychologist, and – what is most important – specialists in rehabilitation.

Another very important aspect of the activities of the Chair of Pediatrics is pre and postgraduate training of physicians and nurses. We may boast that for many years (last 2015) we received the Student Choice Award in recognition of the excellence pregraduate teaching programs. In addition, every year we hold a teaching conference for physicians from health care facilities situated in our region, which are centered on current problems in neonatal care. Polish and foreign lecturers are invited yearly to such conferences, what allows for presenting the participants with state-of-the-art knowledge.

An equally important element in the activities of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit is its research activity. In collaboration with numerous research institutions in Poland and Europe, we carry out studies that may improve therapeutic results and prognosis in severely ill neonates. At present, the main fields of investigations include risk factors in late complications of prematurity (retinopathy, bronchopulmonary dysplasia), psychomotor development of preterm infants when they reach school age, allergy in preterm infants and development of new computerized techniques effective in therapeutic management of newborns.

Contact:

Jagiellonian University Medical College
Faculty of Medicine
Polish-American Children’s Hospital
Chair of Pediatrics

30-663 Kraków, Poland
Wielicka 265 Street
phone (4812) 658 02 56
fax (4812) 658 44 46
e-mail: klinchdz@cm-uj.krakow.pl

Principal Investigator:
Jacek Józef Pietrzyk MD, Ph.D.
Professor of Pediatrics