Endocrinology

• We have a team of specialists with extensive experience in hormonal, glandular and metabolic disorders. 
• We conduct around 13,000 visits a year; 52 visits a day. The most common reasons for consultation are diabetes mellitus, short stature, sexual development disorders, goitre and obesity.
• As an essential element, we focus on treating patients in the family setting.

Specialities and services

• Type 1 Diabetes

Our Diabetes Unit is the biggest in Spain and is accredited as an international reference centre (SWEET accreditation). It is a highly specialised unit that studies diabetes from a multi-point perspective, with three primary goals: broaden scientific knowledge of childhood diabetes, improve care provision and raise awareness in society. 
To treat type 1 diabetes, we have designed and implemented structured training programmes suitable for various age groups and circumstances, covering the onset of the disease, adolescence, insulin pump treatment, etc. The goal is to reduce the impact of diagnosis and make patients and their family key decision-makers when it comes to the disease. Several professionals take part in these educational programmes, including endocrinologists, nutritionists, psychologists and nurses who specialise in therapeutic training on diabetes.

• Obesity

We treat obesity through a similarly multidisciplinary lens, focused on the entire family. Our team consists of endocrinology specialists, nutritional dieticians, nurses, social workers, psychologists and sport specialists. 
Our unit is highly specialised in cases of severe obesity where there are metabolic complications, and also in cases of syndrome-related obesity and monogenic obesity. We treat obesity through an innovative programme called PrevenGo, which allows children and teenagers to create their own strategy to change their habits and lifestyle. They are supported by a health coach and share their goals and results with other children.

• Growth and puberty

We treat all kinds of disorders related to childhood growth and puberty. Our approach is multidisciplinary, working closely with several Hospital departments.

• Diseases of the hypothalamus-pituitary axis

We treat complex patients with congenital and/or tumoral diseases of the hypothalamus-pituitary axis. Medical and/or surgical treatment of these patients requires highly specialised, interdepartmental management. As such, the following departments are often involved: Neurosurgery, ENT, Ophthalmology, Neuroradiology, Oncology, Pharmacy, Anatomical Pathology and Molecular Biology, among others.
Furthermore, there is a dedicated multidisciplinary committee (Tumour board/ hGH Committee) for cross-departmental decision-making and to provide personalised, precision healthcare for each patient. There has also been a transition programme created alongside the adult healthcare facility, Hospital Clínic Barcelona, with whom we have formed an integrated pediatric-adult unit for complex pituitary diseases.

• Oncological endocrinology

Our facility is a monographic centre, meaning it is a leading hospital specialising in childhood endocrine cancer. We take a coordinated multidisciplinary approach, with collaboration between the Oncology, Neurosurgery and Pediatric Surgery Departments.
Moreover, we have a pioneering unit dedicated to survivors of childhood cancer, where specialists from several departments and disciplines come together to monitor and control endocrine side-effects (and other areas) in these patients.
We are also part of the Cancer Predisposition Unit, which monitors patients with genetic mutations predisposing them to various cancers, among which are cancers of the endocrine system. We are also responsible for the monitoring of patients with multiple endocrine neoplasia.

• General endocrinology

We treat all kinds of patients with childhood endocrine disorders. We have created targeted, multidisciplinary care programmes for various circumstances, such as complex pituitary disease, thyroid disease, differences in sex development, the gender identity unit, among others.

Research

The Endocrinology team has a major commitment to research in order to improve scientific knowledge which impacts our patients' health. Our research is carried out at the Sant Joan de Déu Research Institute (IRSJD).

Research coordinator: Dr. Lourdes Ibáñez Toda.

Particular lines of research

• Intrauterine growth delay
• Within the line of research on adult diseases of fetal origin, in which we are a leader. 
• Ovarian hyperandrogenism
• Obesity and metabolic syndrome
• Diabetes 
• Rare genetically-based neurological diseases
• Results of this research between 2010 and 2015, we published 109 articles with a cumulative impact factor of 465.

Collaboration with other research groups 

• We are the only paediatric group that forms part of the Diabetes and Associated Metabolic Diseases Networking Biomedical Research Centre (CIBERDEM) funded by the Instituto de Salud Carlos III.
• We belong to the Spanish Society of Paediatric Endocrinology (SEEP) and the European Society for Paediatric Endocrinology (ESPE) where we actively participate in scientific production and in working groups. 
• Members of our team are responsible for coordinating the Small for Gestational Age (SGA) working group of the SEEP and the Paediatric and Adolescent Gynaecology (PAG) working group of the ESPE.