1. Major Target Diseases
The Division of Pediatric Immunology and Rheumatology mainly treats patients with diseases related to immunoregulatory disorders. Main treatments provided are for primary immunodeficiency disease (congenital immunodeficiency), autoimmune disease (rheumatoid disease)/auto-immune disease are included, and multidisciplinary treatment for chronic pain.
1) Primary immunodeficiency diseases (congenital immunodeficiency)
Primary immunodeficiency disease occurs by dysfunction in some parts of the immune system that protects our body from external threats. Primary immunodeficiency disease can be suspected in cases such as frequently repeated infections, infections caused by uncommon bacteria, and cases where the efficacy of treatment and progress of the disease are worse or last longer than other children. Depending on which part of the immune system is broken, it can be categorized into the following diseases.
A. Cellular immunodeficiency: severe combined immunodeficiency, Hyper-IgM syndrome, Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome, etc.
B. Humoral immunodeficiency: congenital agammaglobulinemia, congenital hypogammaglobulinemia, common variable immunodeficiency, selective deficiency of immunoglobulin A, Hyper-IgE syndrome, etc.
C. Macrophage immunodeficiency: Chronic granulomatous disease, leukocyte adhesion deficiency, neutropenia, etc.
D. Complement immunodeficiency
2) Autoimmune diseases (rheumatoid diseases)/auto-inflammatory diseases
Autoimmune disease/auto-inflammatory disease, well-known as rheumatic diseases, are diseases that occur when the immune system overreacts, as opposed to primary immunodeficiency diseases, in which an autoantibody (an antibody that recognizes the host as an enemy) may or may not be associated with triggering the disease.
A. Autoimmune diseases (rheumatoid disease): Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (infant rheumatoid arthritis), systemic lupus erythematosus, dermatitis, vasculitis, Behcet’s disease, Sjogren’s syndrome, systemic sclerosis, scleroderma, etc.
B. Auto-inflammatory diseases: Periodic fever syndrome, cryopyrin-associated periodic syndromes, etc.
C. Chronic pain syndrome
Most pediatric immune diseases are uncommon enough to be classified as rare (or extremely rare) diseases. The Immunology and Rheumatology Division of Seoul National University Children’s Hospital Pediatric is the only pediatric and adolescent division that treats only pediatric immune diseases in Korea and strives to provide accurate diagnosis and the best personalized treatment based on the accumulated clinical experience of caring for only pediatric immune disease patients for more than 30 years. Though rare, the diseases can show various symptoms. Therefore, we are working closely with other departments to provide specialized and personalized treatment for the diseases and patients.
Since the diseases of pediatric immunology and rheumatology are mostly chronic diseases, it is essential to help patients manage the disease properly, continue their daily activities, and help individuals achieve their dreams. The Division of Pediatric Rheumatology of Seoul National University Children’s Hospital will do our best to accumulate technology based on diverse clinical experiences, conduct research on diseases and treatments, and play a leading role in educating patients and next-generation medical staff.