The Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at Padiyath Medicity - Hopital Du Cinquantenaire provides advanced care for children with a wide variety of life-threatening issues, such as severe infections, respiratory diseases, trauma, and complex post-operative care.

The unit is the only one of its kind In Africa to provide complete Pediatric Surgical support also under one roof(For example trauma, Chest surgeries, Pediatric cardiac surgeries , Flexible Bronchoscopies Etc ). PICU also offers support to several specialties in the hospital including general surgery, oncology, neurology, metabolic medicine, renal, spinal surgery, ENT, respiratory and endocrinology.

The PICU is the only unit in the state that provides extra corporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). ECMO is a life-saving technique that mimics the natural function of the heart and lungs, allowing an infant or child to rest while natural healing of the affected organs takes place. We are equipped with state of art CT-Scan Machine and in-house radiology, pathology, microbiology support to aid in our diagnosis in this difficult subset. PICU is recognized for providing expert care for kids, 24/7.

PICU facilities and services include:

• 7-bed intensive care unit
• In-line oxygen compressed in air pulse oxymeter
• Invasive and non-invasive blood pressure monitors
• Mechanical ventilators

• Defibrillator with Pacemaker ability
• ECMO
• Cardiac monitors

• CVP monitors
• Fully equipped E-cart
• Emergency pediatric and neonatal transport services

We also care for children who need intensive care after surgery or who have a broad range of other conditions, such as these:

• Acute kidney or liver failure
• Breathing or lung problems
• Craniofacial conditions
• Epilepsy and other nervous system conditions
• Immune system and rheumatic conditions

• Intoxication or overdose
• Pulmonary hypertension
• Brain tumors
• Cancer and blood disorders
• Diabetes and other metabolic problems

• Genetic and chromosomal conditions
• Infections, such as bacterial meningitis or sepsis
• Near-drowning
• Sleep apnea and other sleep problems

With the increasing scope of intensive care in paediatric practice and the advent of new technology, and tools, Pediatric Intensive Care has emerged as one of the most demanding, highly specialized Department.

We are proud to say that we are the only center in central & North Africa providing Paediatric Cardio Vascular & Thoracic Surgery department. Department of Pediatric Cardiology at Padiyath Medicity - Hopital Du Cinquantenaire provides comprehensive evaluation and management for patients with a wide range of congenital and acquired heart disease. Current advances in treatment allow 75% of children with critical heart disease to survive.

Pediatric cardiologists work as a team with cardiothoracic surgeons and cardiovascular nurse specialists to provide preoperative diagnosis, intraoperative management, and postoperative care. Surgical interventions are designed to provide the earliest complete repair at the lowest risk and cost. In addition, particular attention is paid to the psychosocial needs of children and their families. This collaborative approach results in clinical outcomes that are among the best reported in the world.

The Pediatric cardiac program at Padiyath Medicity - Hopital Du Cinquantenaire was started recognizing the need for quality care for children with heart disease at an affordable cost. The program is now recognized as one of the leading paediatric heart programs in Africa and is a preferred destination for patients from all over Africa and other countries. A multidisciplinary team from Pediatric Cardiology, Cardiac surgery, Critical care provide continuous care of children with congenital heart disease during preoperative, operative and post operative period.

Common Conditions Treated

• Heart Murmurs
• Congenital Heart Disease
• Cardiomyopathy
• Eisenmenger's Syndrome
• Kawasaki Disease

• Problems Involving Heart Rhythm
• Heart Transplantation
• Heart Failure
• Rheumatic Heart Disease
• Bacterial Endocarditis

• Pericarditis
• Problems Affecting the Coronary Arteries and Blood Vessels
• Syncope
• Pediatric Obesity & Metabolic Syndrome

Diagnostic Services

• Cardiac catheterizations/ interventions
• Continuous monitoring of the heart's electrical activity

• Echocardiograms
• CT angiography
• Electrocardiograms

• Exercise testing
• MRI

Services Offered

1. Cardiac surgical program:

Newborn heart surgery, cosmetic congenital heart surgery, surgery for complex heart defects..

2. Catheter interventions:

Including closure of common heart defects without surgery (ASD, PDA and VSD), newborn interventions, and interventions to complement surgery

3. Comprehensive imaging and diagnostic services:

Echocardiography (trans thoracic, 3D echocardiography, trans-oesophageal and fetal echocardiography), Multi slice CT scan (64 slice CT), MRI for congenital heart defects, diagnostic cardiac catheterization and angiography.

4. Fetal cardiac unit:

A comprehensive fetal cardiac program (the only one of its kind in Africa) is available at Padiyath Medicity - Hopital Du Cinquantenaire. The services include prenatal diagnosis and counselling of pregnant mothers with suspected heart defect in the fetus, prenatal treatment for fetuses with cardiac rhythm disorders.

Facilities

• Dedicated operation rooms with facilities for newborn, infant and complex congenital heart surgery.
• State-of-the-art monitoring systems including dedicated paediatric trans-esophageal echocardiography are available

• Dedicated State-of-the-Art Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care Facility with supporting monitors and ventilators, Inhalational Nitric Oxide and facilities for LV assist and extra-corporeal support.

• The paediatric cardiac intensive care unit has 24 beds in total, 12 of which are located close to the operation theatre.

Procedures Performed

A: Paediatric Heart Operations:

A strong team of three dedicated full time paediatric cardiac surgeons perform heart operations with results that match international standards.The Surgical Treatments Includes,

• Interventional and non interventional treatment
• Complex cardiac defect correction
• The Senning Operation
• Glen Procedure
• Valve Repairs

• Unifocalisation in Pulmonary Atresia
• Extra Cardiac Fontan
• Nikaidoh procedure for transposition
• Paediatric echocardiogram based surgery
• Minimally invasive cardiac surgery in children

• The Fontan procedure (including the extra-cardiac Fontan operation)
• Repair of common AV canal defects.
• Arterial Switch in new born
• Ross Procedure
• Maze procedure to correct cardiac rhythm disturbance in children

B: Catheter Interventions

Closure of many heart defects traditionally need operations for their treatment and often this is an open-heart operation. Today newer developments in cardiac catheterization technology allow closure of selected patients with heart defects without an operation. This avoids the trauma of Surgery and allows very rapid recovery. The procedures are performed in the cardiac catheterization laboratory and require no more than a needle prick in the groin.

C: Pacemaker implantation in children

Comprehensive facilities for pacemaker therapy in children are available.

D: Paediatric Electrophysiology

Comprehensive EP facility is available at Padiyath Medicity - Hopital Du Cinquantenaire for children of all ages.

Pediatric Neurology at Padiyath Medicity - Hopital Du Cinquantenaire works to provide the most up-to-date and highest quality care for children with a wide range of neurological disorders. We strive to better understand the developing nervous system and diseases through cutting edge research. We work with patients and their families to educate them about their disorder and provide them with ongoing care and support.

Newer diagnostic modalities and therapies are offered as part of Paediatric Neurology. We also perform surgery as a therapeutic option in a few selected cases of childhood epilepsy. There are several imaging modalities including functional studies which are routinely performed here. These include PET (Positron emission tomography), SPECT (Single-photon emission computed tomography), fMRI (Functional magnetic resonance imaging, Electrophysiology, Electrocorticography and Video EEG (Electroencephalography).

Pediatric Neurology evaluates and treats children and young adults with nervous system disorders, including:

• Neurobehavioral disorders & Development disabilities (mental retardation, cerebral palsy)
• Spinal Cord disorders (myelomeningocele, spinal muscular atrophy)
• Learning disabilities, dyslexia, and attention disorders

• Critical Care Services
• Tourette syndrome
• Migraine and other pain syndromes
• Epilepsy and other paroxysmal disorders

• Muscular Dystrophies, Guillain-Barre syndrome, and other nerve and muscular disorders
• Neurometabolic and neurogenetic diseases
• Sleep disorders
• Neurocutaneous disorders such as tuberous sclerosis and neurofibromatosis

Services Offered

• Bimonthly Epilepsy clinic for children with different types of epilepsies.
• Neurology clinic (everyday) for varieties of Neurological disorders in children.
• 24 hour emergency on-call service for paediatric neurological emergencies.
• Neuro-developmental assessment for children with complex neurological conditions e.g, cerebral palsy, mental retardation, delayed developmental skills etc.

• Multi-disciplinary care provisions for children with difficult / complex epilepsy e.g, psychological assessment of child’s abilitis, counselling for child & the family, psychiatrist’s support in appropriate cases, help for behaviour management & guidance from special educator for child’ learning.
• Management of Neuromuscular diseases.
• Neuro-Intensive Care (ITU) service for treating acute neurological emergencies.

• In-patient service for admission & treatment of neurological diseases in children with specialy trained nurses.
• Experienced Paediatric Neurosurgery service for newborn babies upto adolescents & adults for varieties of Operable Neurological disorders with option for Neuro-oncology service.

Diagnostic Services

• Electroencephalogram (EEG)
• Electromyography (EMG)
• Sleep monitoring

• MRI
• CT Scan
• Nerve conduction velocities

• Evoked potentials (visual, auditory and somatomosensory)
• Seizure Education Class - Wednesday, 10:00 am or as scheduled.

The Department of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Liver Transplantation at Padiyath Medicity - Hopital Du Cinquantenaire is the first such department in Africa which provides comprehensive A to Z facilities for children with Gastrointestinal and Liver Diseases including the highest level of liver care that is Liver Transplantation. The Department has been built on the principle to provide sophisticated technical facilities and the highest standard of healthcare delivery to equate with the best in the world.

The department provides services ranging from outpatient clinics to managing emergencies in our state of the art ICU. We offer comprehensive diagnostic procedures to aide in diagnosis and treatment plans for individualized patient care.The team is supported by other paediatric super-specialties, Intensivists, skilled GI and Liver Surgeons and Interventional Radiologist.

Common Conditions Treated:

• Inflammatory bowel disease
• Abdominal pain
• Gastrointestinal allergies including milk-soy intolerance

• Chronic diarrhea
• Poor weight gain (failure to thrive)
• Gastrointestinal polyps and hereditary polyposis syndromes

• Vomiting
• Gastrointestinal reflux
• Constipation, soiling
• Hepatitis, jaundice and other liver problems

Services Provided:

• Inpatient care of children
• Outpatient Clinics – Gastroenterology, liver, and cystic fibrosis.

• Diagnostic and therapeutic procedures
• Inpatient consultations requested by other disciplines

• Parenteral nutrition services for inpatients and home parenteral nutritional service

Procedures offered:

• Upper endoscopy
• Lower endoscopy
• Capsule endoscopy
• Impedance pH monitoring

• Liver biopsy
• Anorectal Manometry
• Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostromy (PEG)
• Push enteroscopy

• Hydrogen Breath Test
• Esophageal pH monitoring
• Esophageal Manometry

Childhood Cancer is a catastrophic disease, if untreated it is potentially fatal. It afflicts all communities. The Paediatric Haematology Oncology at Padiyath Medicity - Hopital Du Cinquantenaire offers comprehensive Oncology Care to all children up to the age of 18 years. Children with all types of Hematological and Solid Organ Malignancy receive specialized Oncology services here.

The department offers comprehensive, single-point-of-access, patient-centric care for various hematological disorders (benign and malignant), various solid tumors and for patients undergoing bone marrow/ stem cell transplant therapy.

The team constituted by experienced Pediatric Oncologists, Hematologist, Pediatric Oncosurgeon, Radiation Oncologist, Pediatric Oncology Residents and Nurses, Child Psychologist and Playroom Teachers' who works hard to ensure, that best care is delivered to every child.

Department Highlights

Hospital has a dedicated day care chemotherapy unit with trained oncology nursing staff. The department is well supported with state of art Hematology Laboratory, Transfusion Medicine, Nuclear medicine and Department of radiation oncology.

We offer cutting-edge diagnosis and treatment procedures for children and young adults with conditions such as:

• Leukemia (ALL, AML, CML etc)
• Hodgkin's Disease
• Pelvic abscess (pus)
• Wilms tumor
• Bone tumors
• Germ cell tumors (Gonadal/Extragonadal)
• Nutritional anemias (Iron deficiency, Vitamin B12, Folic acid deficiency)

• White blood cell disorders.
• Aplastic Anemia
• Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma
• Neuroblastoma
• Rhabdomyosarcoma and other soft tissue sarcomas
• Brain tumors
• Liver tumors

• Thalassemia and other hemolytic anemias.
• Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura and other platelet disorders.
• Immunodeficiency states (SCID, Wiscott Aldrich Syndroma etc.)
• Other bone marrow failure syndromes (like PNH, Fanconi's anemia and congenital bone marrow failure states)

Treatments, tests or procedures

• Blood and marrow transplant
• Clinical trials

• Hemoglobinopathy screening and care
• Cancer treatment

• Hemophilia treatment
• Palliative care

Academic and scholastic problems in children upset both parents and teachers. It could be due to many reasons.

Attention, Deficit, Hyperactivity Disorder

• Hyperactivity

• Concentration difficulties

• Impulsivity

IQ (Level of Intelligence)

When age appropriate mental and cognitive development does not occur, it can be found out by IQ testing.

Behaviour problems

The behavioural problems like School refusal, Oppositional behaviour, lying, disobedience, wrong group of friends and gang activities which are not socially or culturally acceptable. This range of problems may be caused by a number of factors such as parenting style which is inconsistent or contradictory, family or marital problems, child abuse or neglect, overindulgence, injury or chronic illness, separation or bereavement.

Emotional problems

Emotional problems includes Tension, poor confidence, withdrawn behaviour, low mood, irritability, anger outbursts, social anxiety, exam anxiety and decreased talk. Decreased sleep and appetite, vomiting, headache, stomach pain and many other physical complaints may be primarily due to childhood depression or anxiety which may affect studies of children.

Learning & Behavioural center provides 2 inpatient units, a Behavioral Health Emergency Room, a 24-Hour Referral Line as well as both Inpatient and Outpatient Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT). Care is provided in a friendly, welcoming and supportive environment. From the time of admission to discharge, the multidisciplinary team focuses on an individualized plan-of-care that is based upon a comprehensive assessment of the individual’s strengths, needs, signs and symptoms.

Services Offered

• Comprehensive psychosocial assessment
• Individualized treatment planning for
• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.
• All behavioral problems like Anger, aggressive behavior, temper tantrums, oppositional defiant disorder, conduct disorder, stealing, lying, destruction of property, obsessive compulsive disorder, eating disorders, bed wetting etc.
• Depression and mood disorders in children
• Learning Disability, poor academic performance

• Teenage counseling on their pubertal changes and how to cope with them, on improving self esteem and career guidance
• Cerebral palsy and Developmental delay
• Speech and language disorders
• Crisis support
• Recreational therapy
• Medication stabilization and education
• Pervasive Developmental disorder
• Child abuse and neglect

• Stress and anxiety, school phobia, exam tension, fear etc.
• Anticipatory guidance for parents about development in children and parenting skills.
• Memory enhancement programs/li>
• Sleep disorders
• Drug abuse
• Down's syndrome
• Psychological educational groups
• Family education and support

Effective prevention, diagnosis, treatment and remedial steps to overcome these problems which affect our children are the objective of this comprehensive learning & behavioural center.

The Department of Pediatric Surgery at Padiyath Medicity - Hopital Du Cinquantenaire is committed to provide paediatric surgical care for all ages ranging from neonates to children requiring elective or emergency surgery. The focus is on evidence based comprehensive healthcare following internationally and nationally accepted protocols.

A well-experienced team of doctors is available to take round-the-clock care of the children. All types of open and endoscopic procedures are performed in the department. All the facilities to take care of children needing surgery are available under one roof. Excellent supportive care in the form of a tertiary care NICU is available for sick and critical neonates, plus a fully equipped paediatric surgical ICU with paediatric ventilators and 7X24 anaesthetist backup.

Facilities

• Fully-equipped department to carry out all types of paediatric endoscopies and laparoscopies
• Back-up of pathology, radiology and critical care facilities

• Well-equipped operation theatres with temperature control, miniature cystoscopes, 3mm laparoscopic instruments, paediatric bronchoscopes, patient warmers, etc.
• Ventilatory support system.

• Fully equipped paediatric surgical ICU with paediatric ventilators and round the clock anaesthetist back up is available.
• Expert team of paediatric cardiologists and paediatric anaesthesiologists to provide care and services of the highest order.

Treatments and Procedures

• 24-hour paediatric emergency services
• Laparoscopic and Single Incision Laparoscopic Surgery (SILS)
• Pediatric trauma services
• Thoracic surgery

• Surgery for congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH)
• Surgical and non-surgical treatment of intussusceptions.
• Major reconstructive genitourinary surgery for newborn and children
• Pediatric surgical oncology services

• Prenatal counseling and advice for expectant parents.
• Pediatric anesthesia
• Minor procedures done under procedural sedation in the emergency room
• Surgery for mal-rotation and volvulus

Taking care of children who require special medical attention has always been a priority at Padiyath Medicity - Hopital Du Cinquantenaire. All conditions dealt with including-Gastroenterology, Nephrology, Neurology, Learning & Behavioural, Haematology Oncology and Cardiology. The Paediatric Surgery department gives a one-stop supervision of approximately all surgical conditions in the child. The whole team works together in a good coordinated manner for the best care for our Pediatric patients.

Our Center for Child Health & Paediatric Surgery provides consultation services through highly qualified and experienced Consultants, who carefully evaluate each patient. After diagnosing patient’s condition, they discuss available treatment options and recommend the most effective one. Our children patients are dealt very delicately and with compassion, keeping in mind the emotion and feelings of the parents and family.