About the VHIR
Here at the Vall d'Hebron Research Institute (VHIR) we promote biomedical research, innovation and teaching. Over 1,800 people are seeking to understand diseases today so the treatment can be improved tomorrow.
Research
We are working to understand diseases, to find out how they operate and to create better treatments for patients. Get to know about our groups and their lines of research.
People
People are the centre of the Vall d'Hebron Research Institute (VHIR). This is why we are bound by the principles of freedom of research, gender equality and professional attitudes that HRS4R promotes.
Clinical trials
Our work is not just basic or translational; we are leaders in clinical research. Enter and find about the clinical trials we are conducting and why we are a world reference in this field.
Progress
Our aim is to make the research carried out at the Vall d’Hebron Research Institute (VHIR) a driving force for transformation. How? By identifying new channels and solutions for the promotion of people's health and well-being.
Core facilities
We offer specialist support for researchers, internal and external alike, ranging from specific services to preparing complete projects. All this, from a perspective of quality and speed of response.
News
We offer you a gateway for staying up to date on everything going on at the Vall d’Hebron Research Institute (VHIR), from the latest news to future solidarity activities and initiatives that we are organising.
The Vall d’Hebron Spine Research Unit (VHSRU) is a growing multidisciplinary group of professionals devoted to spinal disorders with an increasing impact in terms of number of publications, associated IF and research funding. VHSRU has published 198 articles in spine field, 40% of them Q1, with a total IF of 451,9.
Our research unit is organized in four research lines:
VHRSU has been involved as coordinator or collaborator in 25 funded research projects. VHRSU is currently coordinating 5 competitive projects granted by national and international institutions (Marató TV3, Eurospine, SRS, AO, GEER). One of our research projects, the European Spine Study Group (ESSG), has been very successful, with more than 60 published manuscripts and 244 podium presentations. All these projects allowed us to establish new synergies with other research centers and universities. We hope to expand this network in the future.
The group has generated very relevant information in the field of body image perception in AIS over the years and has created a new scale: the Trunk Appearance Perception Scale (TAPS). More recently, we have evaluated the validity of clinical photographs to determine which parameters measured in the pictures correlate with radiological measurements and patients perceptions.
Main research goals are:
1) Analyze responsiveness of TAPS after surgical treatment of idiopathic scoliosis.
2) Analyze change in photographic measurements after surgical or orthotic treatment of idiopathic scoliosis
IP: Juan Bagó Granell
Highly prevalent pathology linked to population ageing. Since 2010, the VH Spine Research Unit is coordinating the unique European multicenter and prospective study and database for ASD called European Spine Study Group (ESSG). Database includes more than 1.000 patients treated in leading European spine units (Madrid, Bordeaux, Zurich, Ankara, Istanbul).
1) Identify predictive factors in heath related quality of life measures (SF36, SRS-22, ODI, VAS). Compare clinical and radiographic features and outcomes at baseline and follow up visits of non-operative and operative patients.
2) Assessment of peri-operative complications and risks in adult deformity surgery. Stratify or score the risk benefit ratio to produce an algorithm for surgical treatment. Limited available information in the field, results are expected to be highly relevant and necessary to establish treatment guidelines.
IP: Ferran Pellisé Uriquiza
Identification of patients at risk, and development of guidelines to prevent allogenic blood transfusion. Currently running and coordinating project TRA -189 /FISS: Clinical, multicenter, randomized, placebo-controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of perioperative use of tranexamic acid on transfusion requirements and surgical bleeding in complex spine surgery test.
IP: M. Jose Clara Colomina Soler
Autologous bone remains the gold standard for stimulating bone repair and regeneration. Spine fusion is one of the most prevalent procedures in orthopaedic surgery. Stem cell use in orthopaedics is very promising but still experimental. We are running a trial to compare mesenchymal stem cells immobilised in bone allograft versus autologous bone graft in fusion for L4-L5 degenerative spondylolisthesis (XCEL-MT-10-02).
The main research goals are:
1) Check the safety of the use of mesenchymal cells in lumbar fusion.
2) To analyze the feasibility of using cell therapy in lumbar fusion comparison with the current gold standard.
IP: Sleiman Haddad Collaborators: Ferran Pellisé Uriquiza, Manuel Ramirez Valencia, Ana García de Frutos, Marta Figueras San Román, Anika Pupak Funding agency: Instituto de Salud Carlos III Funding: 97500 Reference: PI24/01574 Duration: 01/01/2025 - 31/12/2027
PhD student: Alejandro Del Arco Churruca Director/s: Ferran Pellisé Uriquiza University: Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona Year: 2022
PhD student: Ana García de Frutos Director/s: Ferran Pellisé Uriquiza, Juan Minguell Moñart University: Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona Year: 2022
PhD student: Sleiman Haddad , Sleiman Haddad Director/s: Ma Dolores Rodríguez Pardo, Ferran Pellisé Uriquiza, Carles Pigrau Serrallach, Carles Pigrau Serrallach University: Universidad Autònoma de Barcelona Year: 2018
PhD student: Xavier Plano Jerez, Xavier Plano Jerez, Xavier Plano Jerez Director/s: Enric Cáceres Palou University: Universidad Autònoma de Barcelona Year: 2018
PhD student: Susana Núñez Pereira Director/s: Enric Cáceres Palou, Ma Dolores Rodríguez Pardo, Ferran Pellisé Uriquiza University: Universidad Autònoma de Barcelona Year: 2013
PhD student: Antònia Matamalas Adrover, Antònia Matamalas Adrover, Antònia Matamalas Adrover, Antònia Matamalas Adrover Director/s: Enric Cáceres Palou, Juan Bagó Granell, Ferran Pellisé Uriquiza University: Universidad Autònoma de Barcelona Year: 2013
PhD student: Montserrat Domingo Sàbat Director/s: University: Universidad Autònoma de Barcelona Year: 2010
The work improves accuracy in predicting complications at the boundary between the instrumented spine area and the area that is left free when spinal deformity corrective surgery is performed.
Entre els projectes es troben 12 investigacions on participen investigadors i investigadores de Vall d’Hebron.
The Scoliosis Research Society (SRS) has awarded with this prestigious recognition Dr. Pellisé's team for the study on the similarity of the adverse effects of surgeries both in elderly patients and in the general adult population.
