The "Archivos de Bronconeumología 2022" awards have distinguished two investigations by Vall d’Hebron Research Institute’s (VHIR) researchers. The awards have been given by the Spanish Pneumology and Thoracic Surgery Society (SEPAR) national congress held this June. The award distinguishes the best articles published in the official journal of this scientific society.

This year, the award for the best basic-research article has been for the study "Application of a genetic panel for the genetic diagnosis of primary ciliary dyskinesia” carried out and coordinated by the VHIR’ Growth and Development Group, led by Dr. Antonio Moreno, head of the Allergies, Pediatric Pneumology and Cystic Fibrosis Unit at the Vall d’Hebron University Hospital. This multicentric study included patients from Spain who were suspected of suffering from primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD).

PCD is a rare disease characterized by an alteration of the ciliary structure that prevents the proper function of respiratory secretions. There is not currently a definitive diagnostic tool, instead, a combination of expensive and difficult tests is done. The study has created a high-performance genetic panel, as it has diagnosed 81% of the patients studied, without giving any false positives.

Besides, the study "Prevalence and determinants of COPD in Spain: EPISCAN II" has won the award for the original article most cited in 2021. EPISCAN II is a population-based epidemiological study driven by the pharmaceutical company GSK, whose aim is to investigate the prevalence and causes of Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Spain. There were 12 hospitals in the study with Vall d'Hebron as the reference hospital of Catalonia. Dr. Miravitlles is part of the scientific committee and is one of the main authors of this study. Other members of the VHIR’s Pneumology Research Group, led by Dr. Ferrer, head of the Vall d’Hebron Pneumology Service and co-director of the aforementioned research group, have also participated in the study.

In total there were 9,433 participants, 53% women and an average age of 60, of whom 11.8% had COPD. The study showed that COPD is one of the most prevalent diseases in the general population and at the same time one of the most underdiagnosed, (three out of four affected had no medical diagnosis).

The "Archivos de Bronconeumología" awards have been held since 2016 within the framework of the national congress of the SEPAR. The SEPAR brings together over 5,200 pneumologists, thoracic surgeons and other respiratory health professionals in Spain.