6 April 2016, Abu Dhabi – UAE: In line with the World Health Day’s theme ‘Beat Diabetes’,a diabetes and endocrinology consultant in Abu Dhabi affirmedthat research studies show that lifestyle changes could reduce the incidence of diabetes by 58%, if the individual commits to walk for an average of 150 minutes per week at a rate of 30 minutes five days a week, and commits to healthy eating, staying away from obesity.

Dr. Mahmoud Ben Baraka, consultant diabetes & endocrinology at HealthPlus Diabetes & Endocrinology Center in Abu Dhabi warned thatthe number of diabetic patients is steadily increasing with the prevalence of chronic diseases particularly obesity, heart diseases and other ailments.

Today, 7^th April 2016, marks the World Health Day. On this occasion, Dr. Ben Baraka further stated,that diabetes has been leading the list of chronic diseases globally and its prevalence is too high. World Health Organization statistics show that by 2040 the number of diabetic patients will increase to over640 million people. It also reveals that the rate of diabetes type 2 has become very high in the Middle East. Type 2 is linked to heredity and weight which emphasizes the importance oflong-term awareness programs to prevent diabetes by educating members of the community and urging them to adhere to healthy and nutritionally balanced behaviors and focus on exercising which eventually helps a person stay fit, and away from obesity.

Dr. Ben Baraka also pointed out that in recent years we started seeing morecases of diabetes amongst children under 18 years. This is a result of overweight and obesity caused by lack of exercise andthe intake of fatty and high-calorie food.

He added, “HealthPlus Diabetes & Endocrinology Center in Abu Dhabi since it opened 3 years ago, has been keento take into consideration all these factors and adopting programs to prevent diabetes with the support of Health Authority Abu Dhabi, andorganizing public health lectures, seminars and medical conferences to tackle this issue."

Majd Abu Zant, CEO of HealthPlus, said “our Diabetes & Endocrinology Center has a multidisciplinary team of experts consisting of 5 consultant diabetes, internists, ophthalmologists, nutritionists and diabetes educators working collaboratively to provide comprehensive care and support patients better cope with diabetes. We also believe in the important role of medical innovations in helping improve people lives, and have established a ‘Diabetes Technology Unit’, providing all the diagnostic and therapeutic advanced technologies, in addition to integrated programs to monitor diabetic patients to avoid complications of the disease on the foot, eyes, kidneys, heart and other body organs. Our physicians follow up over 8,000 patients since the center opened in 2013, and we receive over 20,000 visits a year. Our Diabetes & Endocrinology Center, in collaboration with Diabetes ZentrumMergentheim, is part of HealthPlus Specialty Outpatient Centers.”

Dr. Ben Baraka further added, “we have launched few diagnostic techniques at the center including a new blood sugar monitoring device, a small-sized device that the patient can stick on the shoulder and is linked to a wireless receiver that the patient carries. The devicemeasuresthe patient’s blood sugar throughout the day without the need to take a blood sample. Usually, we monitor a patient’s blood sugar for two weeks, which helps us determinethe blood sugar levels and identify the times when it increases r decreases. This gives the physician an integrated demonstration of the patient's condition.”

He said, “other developments include the insulin pumps, which are used for diabetes type 1, where the pump spontaneously stops giving insulin when blood glucose levels are low.”

Dr. Ben Baraka commended the fact that the World Health Day theme this year is “Beat Diabetes”, which is an important occasion to raise awareness on the seriousness of diabetes and the importance of prevention through exercising and healthy eating. It’s evident that many health institutions in Abu Dhabi in collaboration with the Health Authority Abu Dhabi continuously raise awareness on fighting diabetes as well as other chronic diseases.

An Advanced IVF Technology Helps an Emirati Family in Abu Dhabi Deliver an HLA matched Baby to be a Bone Marrow Donor to His Sister

Abu Dhabi physicians successfully applied an advanced treatment to an Emirati family who cannot have children due to some medical issues, and were helped by using the In Vitro Fertilization “IVF” technique. The conceived baby was HLA matched to his sister, who’s suffering from Thalassemia and requires frequent blood transfusions; and is currently under treatment using stem cells and bone marrow from her young brother.

Mohammed Ali Al Shorafa Al Hammadi, CEO & Managing Director, United Eastern Medical Services that owns HealthPlus network of specialty centers, said “this advanced treatment unlocks new doors to the treatment of many genetic diseases, noting that Healthplus Fertility Center in Abu Dhabi, with its highly competent and well-experienced medical staff and advanced technologies, offers technologies for conducting accurate tests on embryos during the early days of the prenatal development and before placing it back to the mother’s uterus, which makes choosing healthy embryos possible, and thus reducing chances of genetic disorders. It also helps withidentifying the embryos that are HLA matched to their siblings in order to treat them from different diseases using stem cells.”

Dr. Walid Sayed, Consultant &Medical Director of HealthPlus Fertility Center, and his team who successfully performed the treatment, explained that the couple came to HealthPlus Fertility Center in order to help them with their infertility problem. After performing the required tests and assessing the situation, the physicians decided to perform an “IVF” procedure, taking into consideration that the couple has a daughter who suffers from Thalassemia, as they got married years ago before the pre-marriage testing was mandatory.

“The doctors agreed with the couple to help them conceive a baby using the IVF technique, and to conceive a healthy baby who doesn’t suffer from Thalassemia and is HLA matched to his diseased sister, so that stem cells would be taken from the placenta of the newborn and used to cure his sister from Thalassemia. This treatment approach and technology is considered globally advanced and proven to be successful,” Dr. Walid added.

Dr. Walid Sayed added, “In the first attempt, and after the tests were performed in the lab on a cell from the embryo three days after the fertilization procedure, the tests showed that the embryo’s tissues were not identical to his sisters, and so the couple and the doctors decided not to return the embryo into the mother’s uterus and to repeat the “IVF” procedure again after few months.”

He also said that in the second time the “IVF” procedure was performed, several embryos were produced for the couple, and after performing the tissues’ tests, the doctors found that one of the embryos’ tissues were identical to the sister’s, who is 3 years old and suffers from Thalassemia. Thus, the embryo was returned to the mother’s uterus and she resumed her pregnancy and gave birth to a healthy baby.

“The Emirati little girl is getting treated at one of the globally advanced medical centers in the United States with the use of stem cells and bone marrow taken from her newborn brother, and the initial results are promising,” he further added.

Dr. Walid Sayed stated that advanced IVF techniques have seen a quantum leap towards increasing success rates, in addition to performing more tests on the embryos’ cells within the early days of the prenatal development in order to eliminate any kind of genetic diseases and to ensure the birth of healthy babies.

UEMedical and Camali Clinic to Provide New Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services in Abu Dhabi
INTERNATIONAL STATISTICS REVEAL HIGH INCIDENCE RATE OF CHILDREN MENTAL DISORDERS WORLD-WIDE
30 January 2016, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates: Over 1,000 healthcare professionals attendedthe 4^th International Child and Family Behavioral Health Conference in Abu Dhabi from 28 – 30January 2016. Key speakers and physicians discussed different mental disorders that effects children including Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorders, dysmorphic disorders, autism, and other mental and behavioral disorders.

Dr. Fareeha Amber Sadiq, Lead Consultant Psychiatrist for Children and Adolescents at Camali Clinic in Dubai, and one of the speakers at the conference said, “Around one in five children in the world experience significant mental health or emotional issues as per World Health Organization, and half of mental disorders in adulthood begin before the age of fourteen. We see an important role for early intervention, improving quality of life and supporting young people’s emotional development.”

Dr. Haneen Jarrar, Child Psychologistat Camali Clinic in Dubai, also introduced to the attendants their newly launched program, School Readiness, as a unique model that aims to bridge the gap between home schooling and mainstream schools for children with special needs. She said,“Official government figures estimate that 1 in 68 children in United States will be affected with autism in 2016 (Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2015). It is estimated that around 40% would require specialized education services. Figures in the Middle East are almost similar. More healthcare facilities and supporting programs such as our School Readiness program should be considered.”

At the conference, Camali Clinic Dubai- a leading child and adolescent mental health service-and United Eastern Medical Services (UEMedical), Abu Dhabi’s leading privately owned healthcare development and investment company, signedan official cooperation agreement to jointly deliver child and adolescent mental health services in Abu Dhabi. UEMedical owns the new flagship Danat Al Emarat Hospital for Women and Children, and HealthPlus chain of medical centers across Abu Dhabi.

Mr. Mohamad Ali Al Shorafa, CEO & Managing Director of UEMedical and Chairman of HealthPlus, said, “Our collaboration comes in line with the Health Authority of Abu Dhabi’s strategy to fulfilling a gap in the delivery of children mental health services in Abu Dhabi and increase access to high quality services. It represents another step for UEMedical in the realization of the UAE leaders’ vision to provide the people of UAE with the highest standards of healthcare facilities.”

Mr. Majd Abu Zant, CEO of HealthPlus also stated, “By the second quarter of 2016,Camali Clinic will be providing mental health services for children with emotional, behavioral or learning difficulties at our recently launched HealthPlus Children’s Specialty Center in Abu Dhabi. With this significant agreement, a psychiatrist led team of highly qualified clinicians from Camali Clinic will be leading the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Department in our center offering clinical services best suited for our population that would be consistent with the high standards, procedures and outstanding outcomes for which both organizations are reputed for.”

"Our collaboration with UEMedical, represents another positive step for Camali Clinic in fulfilling our vision of establishing a dynamic center of excellence; providing holistic child and adolescent mental health services to the UAE and the wider region. There will be an ongoing drive from Camali Clinic to raise awareness amongst the local community including schools and other professionals working with children,” added Dr. Amber.

Camali Clinic, a member of The Quality Network for Community CAMHS (QNCC), an initiative of the Royal College of Psychiatrists (UK), reinforces the commitment to improve clinical outcomes through linking with local renowned partners. Camali Clinic Consultants will be offering child and adolescent mental health service in Abu Dhabi in collaboration with HealthPlus Children’s Specialty Center for young people upto 18 years of age who are experiencing emotional, behavioral or learning difficulties; as well as addressing the current gaps in mental health care provision.