ZUCH Formally Established ICPDPM

At 8 o'clock in the morning on August 21, the International Center for Pediatric Diabetes Precision Medicine (ICPDPM) was officially established in the Children's Hospital of Zhejiang University with the words of Prof. Shu Qiang, the Secretary of the Party Committee of the Children's Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine as well as the director of National Clinical Research Center for Child Health.

Competent Center, Classic Treatment

With the development of society, the living environment and lifestyle changed. In the past 30 years, the prevalence of overweight and obesity among urban school-age children in my country has increased by more than 10 times. In 2009, obesity among children and adolescents in China reached 8.9%, and overweight reached 11%. Childhood diabetes not only seriously endangers children's survival and quality of life, affects family happiness and harmony, but also causes huge potential life loss and social and economic burdens. However, diabetes is not incurable, precise diagnosis and treatment and prevention and control can greatly improve the quality of life of patients and avoid the occurrence and development of serious complications.

As the World Diabetes Foundation (WDF)-China Child Diabetes Management Sub-center and China Type 1 Diabetes Integrated Medical Management Model Demonstration Base, ZUCH always pays attention to the patients.Therefore, Professor Fu Junfen in the hospital established the China Children's and Adolescents Obesity and Diabetes Alliance, conducting investigations on the prevalence and high-risk factors of diabetes in 330,000 children and adolescents with Children diabetes in 18 medical centers across the country.

Networking Conference, Leading Experts

Due to the COVID-19, the conference was held through remote connection, and more than 1,500 domestic and foreign experts and scholars participated in the conference thourough the Internet to witness the official establishment of ICPDPM.

In the opening ceremony, Professor Fu Junfen, the Executive VicePresident of ZUCH as well as the academic leader of Endocrinology, introduced the background, goals and plans of the establishment of the center, and expressed her vision: “It is hoped that the establishment of the center can provide medical big data support for the country to formulate children's diabetes health guidance, provide a full range of medical services and health guidelines for more diabetes patients at home and abroad, so that more diabetics can lead normal lives.”

After the speeches, Professor Constantin Polychronakos from McGill University Health Centre in Canada, Professor Hakon Hakonarso from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia in America, and Professor Luo Feihong, Director of the Department of Endocrinology, Genetics and Metabolism from the Children's Hospital of Fudan University respectively made speeches with the titles of Recent progress of young onset diabetes, Research progress of latent, Research progress of latent autoimmune diabetes in adults and Essentials of Diagnosis and Treatment of Children's Single Gene Diabetes Based on Cases. They shared their experience in the diagnosis and treatment of childhood diabetes with participating experts and scholars, and also expressed the expectation of continuing to strengthen research in the later period.

Benevolent Doctors, Potential Center

After the establishment of the center, the research teams led by Professor Fu Junfen, Professor Constantin Polychronakos and Professor Hakon Hakonarso will all participate in the construction of the center. In addition, the center has received the support of the March of dimes Birth Defects Foundation of China and the joint support of many domestic first-class medical units.

Gathering the top pediatric endocrinology experts at home and abroad, relying on the  National Clinical Research Center for Child Health and with the strong support of the March of dimes Birth Defects Foundation of China, ICPDPM is capable to become an international leader of the precise diagnosis and treatment of children's diabetes, establishing an international-level translational medicine research platform in the field of childhood diabetes, providing medical big data support for the country to formulate a health strategy for childhood diabetes, research and establish clinical standards for precision diagnosis and treatment of childhood diabetes in China, and also carrying out scientific research on precision medicine for childhood diabetes.

International Affairs Office

2020.8.21