BARCELONA, 22 (EUROPA PRESS)
The Hospital ClÃnic de Barcelona has developed the first biomarkers of image for the early diagnosis of brain damage in children, occurring in between 10% and 12% of infants, which estimated that nearly half they will suffer from disorders of learning in the future
This have announced the head of medical service ClÃnic Maternofetal and head of the research group of Fetal Medicine and Perinital of the Idibaps, Eduard Gratacós, and the director of science, research and environment of La Caixa community, Enric band, it has funded the research project with 1.2 million euros.
Progress is particularly significant as it finds that brain, problems that allow to implement preventative strategies to avoid problems of development futures in the path of the preventive and personalized medicine can demonstrate, noted Gratacós.
Biomarkers that induce brain damage is achieved through an MRI babies of one year with the aim of studying the “wiring brain child” – neural brain-white matter and, subsequently, an analysis complex and detailed in charge of biologists and engineers who identify the existence of alterations, it has been reported the pediatrician.
Through the application of the theory of complex networks, experts analyze what areas of the brain have abnormalities and are able to predict in 94 per cent of the cases what children will have an abnormal test in two years.
Test candidates
This test, which could be a clinical reality in four or five years, is aimed only at extreme premature babies – 10% of births are premature and 1% are extreme – and babies with growth in the womb problems – what happens in 7% of cases-.
Two-thirds of the brain defects occur in the womb, has explained Gratacós, who has stated that this analysis is a pioneer in the world in its application to children, by the special difficulties posed by the fact that babies have fewer white matter and fat.
Drugs in 20 years
Waiting for drugs to treat this damage, estimated it that it can happen in 20 years, are now potential therapies of early stimulation aimed to correct this problem in the first two years of life, which is when it happens the main formation of the brain.
It is possible and appropriate to act at that precise moment, it has ensured Gratacós, convinced that the advancement, presented at global conferences could be a reality in clinical practice in five years, after the analysis of 1,000 children about a year.
School failure
Gratacós team previously showed that this group of children with brain damage could suffer problems of development in the future, and now he welcomed the achievement of biomarkers to personally identify which children suffer from these problems precisely to provide a solution to prevent the future consequences, including school failure in the mild form of the damage.
The aforementioned problems is “invisible” in the first years of life, and when he gets in evidence – generally to the years 6-7, has a difficult solution.
