The range of medical technologies of the Children's Hospital has a new addition - the first velo spiroergometer for children in Latvia, which helps to perform cardiopulmonary exercise tests. The new equipment has been purchased thanks to a donation of almost 60 thousand euros from AS DelfinGroup - a long-term supporter of the Children's Hospital Foundation. It is the first and only device in Latvia that performs examinations of the functionality children respiratory, blood, nervous, and musculoskeletal systems.

Zane Straume, Member of the Management Board of the Children’s Hospital appreciates the donation and the possibilities the new device brings to the Children's Hospital: “We are thankful for the initiative of our colleagues and the support of donors in facilitating the addition to hospital services which provides a standardised set of examinations both for patients in the Children’s Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery Clinic and for young athletes as a part of health screening.”

Doctors of the Children's Hospital have experience and knowledge, as well as great motivation to improve treatment and diagnostics for children here in Latvia. The support of sponsors is very important when it comes to introduction of new methods in diagnostics, being the first step of treatment, afterwards followed by doctors and the state, which pays for the service. “Sincere thanks to the donor - AS DelfinGroup, for the support that will help children to receive new, valuable treatment and strengthen the motivation of doctors in their daily work and implementation of new plans,” said Liene Dambiņa, Head of the Children's Hospital Foundation.

Ivars Lamberts, Member of the Management Board of AS DelfinGroup, explains the motivation behind the donation: “The potential of children's opportunities is enormous, and our call as a socially responsible company is to participate in creating the conditions for them to fulfil these opportunities. Supporting medical care and children, including long-term cooperation with the Children's Hospital Foundation, is an important part of AS DelfinGroup's Social Responsibility Policy. We are pleased to have the opportunity to provide such support.”

The examination method will be used for patients with congenital heart diseases and pathologies, undergoing long-term recovery from heart surgery, as well as after inflammatory heart diseases, such as inflammation of the heart muscle or myocarditis. It is also used to assess the level of exercise for patients, who have had previous heart rhythm problems. During the test doctors assess whether the patient has heart rhythm disorders, how the exercise affects them, and whether the coronary blood supply has changed. The examination helps to identify indicators for joining the heart transplant waiting list for patients with dilated cardiomyopathy. Velo spiroergometry in general allows to assess any health risks for children, including for children actively involved in sports.

Children from the age of six can use the treadmill for the test, but the velo ergometry wheel can be used from the age of ten, or above 1.40 m height. In order to perform a cardiopulmonary exercise test on a patient, the child cardiologist, child pulmonologist or child physician will evaluate the indicators and contraindications for the examination before the patient is thoroughly examined.

The velo spiroergometry ward will be located in the Outpatient Health Care Department of the Children’s Hospital. Active training is underway for doctors to begin using velo spiroergometry on young patients soon. The device will help the doctors to better examine their patients.

The information was prepared by the Children's Clinical University Hospital.