MU–Varna held a two-day international scientific event dedicated to modern approaches in paediatric clinical nutrition, organised within the framework of project No. BG-RRP-2.004-0009-C02 “Medical University–Varna: Enhancement of Translational Excellence Achievement in Medicine (MUVE-TEAM)”, through scientific group “Nutrition and Neurosciences” (NutriLect). This year, the scientific forum included a School on Paediatric Nutrition and an International Conference on Paediatric Clinical Nutrition.
The ESPEN (European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism) School on Paediatric Nutrition consisted of two specialised modules from the European LLL platform, dedicated to nutrition in children with gastrointestinal, inflammatory and neurological diseases, as well as approaches to enteral and parenteral nutrition. The lecturers were prominent experts from Belgium, Croatia, the United Kingdom and Bulgaria. They presented established clinical practices and practical case studies.
The International Conference on Paediatric Clinical Nutrition was focused on nutritional screening and assessment in children, nutrition in children with cerebral palsy, inflammatory bowel diseases, eosinophilic esophagitis, functional abdominal pain, liver and pancreatic diseases, as well as early childhood nutrition, eating disorders and neurodiversity. The Conference brought together specialists in clinical nutrition from across the country, as well as representatives of ESPGHAN (European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition).
Aiming to improve the care provided for children with eating disorders, the experts shared ideas and practical experience.
Prof. Dr. Ruzha Pancheva, lead researcher of Scientific Group “Nutrition and Neurosciences” (NutriLect), underscored, “Today, we are at the crossroad between science and compassion, united by a single goal – to provide every child with a chance to grow.” The forum presented the outcomes of NutriLect project, which studies nutrition in children with neurodegenerative diseases.
Prof. Dr. Ilze Broekaert from Germany pointed out that the topic she was presenting at the Conference was related to specialised diets in paediatric gastroenterology and emphasised that her goal was to share her expertise on patients with eating disorders with a greater number of specialists.
Prof. Dr. Koen Huysentruyt from Belgium commented, “One of the projects we are currently working on is a survey focused on parents regarding what information they need about the use of gastrostomy tubes, what concerns they are experiencing, and the improvements they are expecting.” The specialist explained that this was a project which was being developed in various countries through the ESPGHAN Special Interest Group (SIG) on Clinical Malnutrition, and that more than 20 centres already intended to participate in it.
Prof. Dr. Kostas Gerasimidis from the United Kingdom highlighted that nowadays there were plenty of red tape issues regarding the way clinical trials need to be conducted, numerous guidelines for their implementation, and too many stringent regulations. “The major challenge is that we have far too many ideas and very little time to implement them, but we persevere in order to improve the ways in which we treat children with chronic diseases through nutrition,” further elaborated the specialist.
During the forum, a lot of postgraduates from MU-Varna joined the poster sessions with their projects on specific nutritional needs.
