Respiratory Medicine

Francois Boldus and Piush Mandhane collaborated on research for pregnant women like Tara Daubert, who gave birth to a healthy girl in May. — Francois Bolduc (centre) and Piush Mandhane (r) collaborated on research for pregnant women like Tara Daubert, who gave birth to a healthy girl. Bolduc, an associate professor in pediatric neurology, and Mandhane, a pediatric respirologist, focused their study on what impact eating more fruit during pregnancy has on the development of babies. Click on the photo to learn more.

Since 2000, the department and the Stollery Children's Hospital have had dedicated staff and facilities to care for children with complex breathing disorders. These children often require a multidisciplinary approach involving many healthcare team members.

To care for these children, there is a comprehensive quaternary pediatric respiratory service with our team of five pediatric respirologists along with dedicated nurse specialists, a nurse practitioner and clinic coordinators collaborating with respiratory therapists, scientists and researchers.

The Pediatric Asthma Clinic offers a complete service in diagnosing and managing complex pediatric asthma and wheezing disorders, as well as promoting asthma education and research.

The Northern Alberta Pediatrics Sleep Laboratory (NAPS) and Pediatric Sleep Medicine Program manages children with both respiratory and non-respiratory sleep problems. Joanna MacLean is establishing an infant sleep laboratory.

There are many children in the community and in hospital requiring long-term ventilatory support. Our pediatric respirologists oversee a program providing ventilation for children with various forms of respiratory disease. As part of the multidisciplinary team, we coordinate a tracheostomy clinic and work closely with our otolaryngology colleagues and respiratory therapists.

There are over 120 children with Cystic Fibrosis, who are cared for by a team of pediatric respirologists, clinical nurse specialists, a nutritionist, a physiotherapist and a social worker.

We also provide comprehensive services for children with more rare chronic pulmonary disorders (i.e. interstitial lung diseases or systemic diseases associated with pulmonary complications). For children with end stage lung disease that is not curable or treatable, we offer the hope of new lungs through lung transplantation, which receives referrals from across Canada.

There are many children with neuromuscular conditions, who are seen through a joint clinic with pediatricians at the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital.

All children with a breathing concern are seen in our general pulmonary clinics or as inpatients within the Stollery Children's Hospital. We offer spirometry in clinics and have easy access to a comprehensive lung function laboratory. All of our pediatric respirologists perform bronchoscopic examination of the airway using dedicated time within the Endoscopy Suite at the Stollery Children's Hospital. We often collaborate with other services to provide joint investigations during this time. For example, our gastroenterology colleagues join us on mutual patients to help diagnose conditions like eosinophilic esophagitis.