Once the diagnosis is confirmed then appropriate treatment will be suggested to the patient based on the symptoms
Bai Jerbai Wadia Hospital for Children has introduced gold standard sweat chloride testing for children, adolescents, and young adults to confirm or rule out the diagnosis of cystic fibrosis (CF). It is a progressive, genetic disease leading to persistent lung infections and breathing problems.
Dr Parmarth Chandane who manages the paediatric respiratory department, Wadia hospital said, “One will be asked to undergo the tests when there is a family history of cystic fibrosis or symptoms pointing towards CF. Before this test, any creams and lotions should not be applied to the skin for 24 hours. The sweat test can be helpful to determine the number of chloride ions in sweat. Those with CF can have a high amount of chloride in their sweat. In a sweat test, the patient’s skin is stimulated to generate sweat that is absorbed into a special collector, the test gets over in half an hour and then the analysis is done. If the patient is detected with a high chloride level of more than 60 millimoles per litre, then there is a likelihood of cystic fibrosis. This gold standard test is relatively cheap and results are available immediately as compared to the genetic test (where the results will be available only after three to four weeks and come at an extremely prohibitive cost).”
This is a gold standard test, no further testing for confirmation of diagnosis would be required. Once the diagnosis is confirmed then appropriate treatment will be suggested to the patient based on the symptoms.
The introduction of Sweat Chloride Testing is a boon for patients with suspected Cystic Fibrosis as they will be able to get prompt treatment. The hospital remains at the forefront of cutting-edge technology and handles complex situations with its skilled expertise. We hope that more and more patients seek to benefit from this sweat testing that causes higher morbidity and mortality in the patients,” concluded Dr Minnie Bodhanwala, CEO, Wadia Hospital.
