11 November 2013
UK's First Research Into the Effect of Exercise on Children with Congenital Heart Disease
Toshiba Medical Systems Ltd today announced a three-year
research partnership with the University of Bristol and the
University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust's Clinical
Research and Imaging Centre (CRICBristol). The first research study
of its kind in the UK sees a collaboration with the Bristol Heart
Institute (BHI) and the University of Exeter's Children's Health
and Exercise Research Centre to investigate the effects of exercise
on children with congenital heart disease - one of the most common
types of birth defects that affects up to nine in every 1,000
children born in the UK today.
The new echo-cardiography research project will identify the
healthy limits of exercise and the wider benefits of exercise for
children with congenital heart defects. Researchers will
investigate fitness levels of 40 children born with a heart
condition compared to 40 healthy child and adolescents, whilst
exercising, which is when the heart is working harder. This will
allow the researchers to investigate the heart performance under
stress, to help with better identification of abnormalities, which
sometimes do not present at rest. To date, echo cardiograms in
children have traditionally been used while patients are at rest,
making it more difficult to assess heart condition, performance and
abnormality.
The aim of the project is to more precisely identify the safe
levels of exercise for the children, as well as to clearly define
the positive benefits that regular exercise delivers to children
over time. The 80 children will be scanned over a period of months
using state-of-the-art ultrasound scanning technology from Toshiba
Medical Systems.
Dr. Guido Pieles, Academic clinical lecturer in paediatric
cardiology at the Bristol Congenital Heart Unit, says: "This is the
first kind of research of its type in the UK. Our institutions have
close ties with the NHS. It's our aim that this clinical research
benefits the NHS through better understanding of the role of
exercise in life-long care for children born with congenital heart
disease.
"Through this research we hope to improve scanning protocols and
applications that will enable better, more precise and earlier
diagnoses of heart function abnormalities and then to quickly
identify effective treatment pathways for children with congenital
heart disease. Additionally, we'll also be able to better assess
the benefits of exercise for children with obesity and other
conditions caused by poor diet and sedentary lifestyles."
Professor Craig Williams, director of the Children's Health and
Exercise Research Centre (CHERC) at the University of Exeter, adds:
"This research project is exciting and much needed. This is a first
step to a wider goal that looks at exercise as a good 'medicine'
for sick children in general. Our work over 25 years has shown the
physiological, psychological and social benefits exercise brings to
children with a variety of conditions. It's important for sick
children to be able to play with their mates!
"This research will allow us to better identify how much
activity and how often, as at present clinicians aren't really sure
what advice for children with certain conditions should be
prescribed. The findings of this research will be a significant
step forward for clinicians as care providers and wellbeing guides
for the children with congenital heart disease, their families and
carers."
The research will be undertaken using Toshiba's Aplio 500CV
high-end ultrasound scanner. Its revolutionary High Density
Architecture provides the researchers with clinical images of
exceptional resolution and detail even while the child is
exercising. Additionally, the system is equipped with a wide range
of powerful clinical tools for advanced visualization,
quantification and intervention for daily routines during this
clinical research project.
The resulting applications could result in the development of
procedures that ensure child patients have better, faster and safer
journeys from scanning to treatment. Additionally the health
service will benefit from the technology and understanding that
might enable not only greater accuracy in defining paediatric
patient pathways, but also cost savings produced by faster
diagnosis and treatment.
Mark Hitchman, Managing Director, Toshiba Medical Systems, says;
"It's a very exciting project for us. We understand that when
investigating child patients, non-invasive procedures are the norm.
With that in mind, the scanning equipment is crucial, as everything
related to the subject is smaller and more challenging than adult
patients. As such, capturing detailed heart function images is very
difficult.
"Our heritage in applied research and development means that we
have developed the technical capabilities to be an important
partner in research of this kind. We're excited to see the initial
results from our world class research partners and how the benefits
can be passed on to the wider UK health system."
Dr Chiara Bucciarelli Ducci, Co-Director of CRICBristol
and Consultant Cardiologist at the BHI concluded: "This is an
incredibly important partnership between two renowned academic
centres, and two very specialised NHS institutions such as the
Bristol Children's Hospital and the BHI and a world-class medical
equipment manufacturer like Toshiba.
"At CRICBristol we try to act as a catalyst in fostering
collaboration between the University and the NHS to improve
healthcare delivery and promote best clinical practice. Having an
important partner as Toshiba empowers us in achieving these
goals."
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