Child Neurology in Slovenia – historical background

The beginings of Child Neurology in Slovenia date back in the year 1954 when American-Slovene Women Association donated to the Childrens Hospital in Ljubljana the first 8-channel electroencephalograph (Eden®), which was also the first EEG machine in the country.

Professor Jože Jeras was designated by existing administrative director to introduce electroencephalography (and also electrocardiography) in everyday clinical practice as new diagnostic tools. He himself wrote about that time that ” the birthplace of Child Neurology happened to be not on the clinical grounds but in the neurophysiology lab”.

In the same year (1954) the first slovene outpatient clinic (dispansery) for children and adolescents with epilepsy was established and soon after the inpatient unit specialized in neurological diseases of infants, children and adolescents was opened at Childrens Hospital Ljubljana.

The head of the unit (future Neuropsychiatirc Department) became dr Ivica Tivadar, who has become also close co-worker with professor Jeras and together they wrote the book in English language: Epilepsies in Children in 1973 and got also the State Award for it. It was during this period and owing to dr Tivadar that also multidisciplinary approach and team work came into everyday practice and meetings with different other specialist’s groups became common (e.g. neuroradiologists, neurosurgeons, neurophysiologists etc).

In the 70-ies the National Registry of At-risk Infants was established and ran by prof. Milivoj Velièkoviæ-Perat whi is at present also the Head of Centre for Developmental Neurology. The registry was aimed at registration of those newborns born at 11 regional Maternity Hospitals who have had any perinatal risk factors which could influence later neurodevelopmental status and final outcome. For follow-up and management of such infants and toddlers specially trained health professionals (e.g. physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech therapists, etc) have been educated at courses in neurodevelopmental management (Bobath Courses), while those pediatricians whose primary aim was to care for the children and adolescents with neurological diseases were trained and educated additionally at Postgraduate Courses in Child Neurology, organized by the Department at School of Medicine, Ljubljana.

In the 90-ies in accord with new trends of “children-friendly hospital concept” the Outpatient care and daily hospitalisations with more bedside functional diagnostics (electroencephalography, cardiorespiratory functional studies, sleep studies) came into power. In the 90-ies also Centre for Child & Adolescent Epilepsy was established and is headed by dr Igor M Ravnik. The aim of this Centre is comprehensive care for children and adolescents with epilepsies and constant help and informations for their parents. There are also weekly team meetings for management and care of those patients with severe forms and intractable epilepsies (and those who are future candidates for epilepsy surgery).

Today the Department of Pediatric Neurology with it’s two independent centres (Centre for child & adolescent epilepsy and Centre for developmental neurology with Registry) and Laboratory for Functional Neurological Investigations (incl. digital electoencephalography, video-EEG, videotelemetry, evoked potentials, bedside cardiorespiratory functional studies, sleep diagnostics) and Laboratory for Neuropsychology is taking care for around 4000 outpatients and 2000 inpatients yearly.

Since 1986 the Department is closely connected to and providing occasional neuropaediatric consultant service at Al Sabah Childrens Hospital – Neuropaediatric Unit in Kuwait.
The inherited concept of multidisciplinary approach is still present at our department and regular team meetings with various experts from associated fields (especially from neurosciences) are going on also today as well as occasional clinical and educational cooperation with experts from abroad.

Prof. David Neubauer, MD, PhD