Research - International Health Service

The research promoted by the International Health Service (SSI) is part of the Barcelona Institute of Global Health (ISGlobal). ISGlobal consolidates a node of excellence based on research and medical care that has its origins in the Hospital Clínic and the University of Barcelona and that has more than 30 years of experience in the field of global health. In this way, the healthcare section of imported tropical diseases within the Hospital Clínic is reinforced by the activity of ISGlobal, which aims to complement and support the treatment of tropical diseases, not only through the knowledge generated by research, but also through the transfer of this knowledge to society.

The research activity of the International Health Service is based on three main lines of research: Forgotten Tropical Diseases, Imported Infectious Pathology and Health and Migration

Forgotten tropical diseases. The main areas of work are Chagas disease and helminthiasis:

• Chagas. The burden of infection and disease in Latin American individuals from endemic areas, routes of transmission in non-endemic areas, and potential biomarkers of disease progression and therapeutic efficacy are studied. Studies have also been carried out on the cardiological and gastrointestinal complications of the disease, in collaboration with the Cardiology, Gastroenterology and Radiology Services.

• Helminthiasis. The main focus of work is infection control in sub-Saharan Africa, through the development and evaluation of new drugs for disease control, and the assessment of the impact of improvements in water, sanitation and hygiene. The main countries working in this field are Mozambique, Ethiopia and Kenya.

Imported Pathology. All imported tropical diseases are the subject of clinical study. Multiple clinical and epidemiological studies have been conducted to address the diagnosis, treatment, and drug resistance of major imported diseases: Malaria, Arbovirus, Enteropathogens, and parasitic diseases.

Migration and health. By studying the complete migration cycle in relation to the health system, the objectives are to identify the priority health needs of the immigrant population and to propose changes and / or solutions that improve care and cover the needs of this population.

The research activity of the International Health Service implemented from ISGlobal is approached from a global perspective. We collaborate with all the Spanish and European groups that are part of the RICET (ISCIII) and TROPNET (European network of imported pathology) networks.