About us

Department of partial epidemiology with the clinic of infectious diseases was created in 1923 in the Kharkiv medical institute the on the base of infectious department of the Kharkiv military hospital № 4 (Geroiv Nebesnoi Sotni sq., 14). First head of the department was doctor of medicine, Full Professor Zinayida Nesmelova – first female Professor and doctor of medicine in Ukraine. In 1926 a department was shifted in 3^rd infectious department of 2^nd of the Soviet hospital on Geroiyv Hkarkova av. Scientific researches were conducted in direction of study of clinic of the louse-borne typhus, infectious erythemas, clinic and epidemiology of malaria, influenza, epidemic parotitis, typhoid and others infectious diseases.

Studies with students of various levels of higher education who study in the educational and professional programs of “Medicine”, “Pediatrics”, “Dentistry”, “Laboratory diagnostics”, “Nursing”, “Public health” in the field of knowledge “Protection health” are held at the department.

Students of the second (master’s) level of higher education of the 4th, 5th and 6th courses of the specialty “Medicine” and “Pediatrics” are trained, who study the discipline “Infectious diseases” and “Phtisiology” and educational components of their choice at the department. Students of the second (master’s) level of higher education of the 4th year majoring in “Dentistry” study the educational component “Infectious diseases”. Under the specialty “Technologies of medical diagnostics and treatment”, students of the first (bachelor’s) level of higher education of the 3rd and 4th years study the discipline (educational component) “Infectious diseases and epidemiology with evaluation of research results”, and students of the second (master’s) level of higher education, 1st year – selective educational component “Infection control”. The discipline “Infection control” is also studied as an elective by students of the second (master’s) level of higher education of the 1st year of the “Nursing” specialty. Applicants of the second (master’s) level of higher education of the 1st year of the specialty “Public Health” study the educational component “The most important socially significant and especially dangerous infectious diseases”. Disciplines are taught in the State and English languages.

The research work of the department includes research of the problems of diagnosis, prevention and treatment of HIV-infection/AIDS and opportunistic infections, as well as determination of the role of immunological and metabolic disturbances in the liver fibrogenesis of patients with parenterally transmitted viral hepatitis from perspective of diagnosis improvement and treatment optimization. The problems of antiviral therapy of viral hepatitis, acute respiratory diseases and herpetic infections are actively developed. Researches on insufficiently known infections, such as bartonellosis, anaplasmosis and ehrlichiosis started at the department in the 2005. Department participates in several international programs on antiretroviral therapy of HIV-infection, diagnosis and treatment of AIDS. The study of acute intestinal infections was conducted from the perspective of clinical and microecological aspects of pathogenesis and development of new methods of specific therapy based on administration of new probiotics and intestinal antiseptics. In 2013-2015 the employees of the department carry out two researches: the initiative – “Improvement of diagnosis and treatment of viral and bacterial infections and their complications” and financed by the government “Development of the system for monitoring of metabolic disorders in patients with co-infections HIV/HCV against a background of antiviral therapy”. Every second Saturday of month we hold a meeting of student’s scientific society, where modern theoretical questions of infectology are discussed and the patients are examined. Students take an active part in research activity of the department. One of direction of research is diagnostics and treatment of COVID-19 and its complications.

From 1991 19 candidate of science and 3 doctor of science thesis were protected. As a result of research work 3 monographs and 15 training manuals were published.

The staff of the department actively co-operates with research establishments in Ukraine and foreign countries, in particular with Kharkiv Research Institute of Microbiology and Immunology named after I.I. Mechnikov”, “Institute of Therapy named after L.T. Mala”, “S.P. Grigoriev Institute for Medical Radiology”, Kharkiv National University of Radioelectronics, Kharkov Regional HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Center. A number of scientific and practical international conferences were also held in the department.

The prognostic significance of inflammatory markers in assessing the course of the disease and the effectiveness of chemotherapy for pulmonary tuberculosis is also being studied.

On the basis of the department, international scientific and practical conferences on the state register “General problems of parenteral infections” (2013), “Mechnikov readings” (2018, 2020, 2022) were held.

NE KLC “Regional Clinical Hospital of Infectious Diseases” is the clinical base of the department. Employees of the department, despite the complexity of the military situation, conduct medical-diagnostic and organizational-methodical work in the intensive care unit, diagnostic, respiratory infections, neuroinfections, oropharyngeal infections, acute intestinal infections as well as in the Regional specialized hepatology center. Consultative, organizational and medical work the employees of the department is also done in the units of the Regional Clinical Hospital – the center of urgent medical aid and catastrophe medicine; Kharkiv Regional Clinical Centre of Urology and Nephrology named after V.I. Shapoval and other medical and preventive establishments of Kharkiv. Specialists of the Department conduct consulting and treatment of patients with COVID-19. The generally accepted and newest medical-diagnostic techniques are used on a department: immune-enzyme analysis, polymerase chain reaction, genetic typing of HCV genome, immunological and immunohistochemical researches, noninvasive methods of liver morphological changes research, study of lipid metabolism and peroxidation, ultrasonography of abdominal organs, distance thermography, laser and magnetic-laser therapy, phytotherapy.

The teachers of the department actively consult tuberculosis patients on the basis of the Regional Tuberculosis Dispensary No. 1 and participate in the meetings of the CDCC on Sensitive and Chemoresistant Tuberculosis.

Employees of the department participate in international projects based on the conclusion of cooperation agreements, namely:

– with the Center for Molecular Cardiology of the University of Zurich in the field of research of COVID-19;

– with the Institute of Microbiology of the Bundeswehr (Germany) within the program of the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) in Ukraine on research and improvement of methods for diagnosing hantavirus infection.

Employees of the department take part in the work of international associations, in particular Professor K.V. Yurko is a member of the European HIV Clinical Society (EACS), Professor K.V. Yurko, А.В. Bondarenko, A.V. Sokhan and associate professor D.V. Katsapov are members of the Open Medical Institute, American Austrian Foundation, Salzburg, Austria, prof. D.O. Butov is a member of the European Respiratory Society (EU), the International Union of Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases (FR) and others. Employees of the department regularly participate in international conferences, webinars and other scientific events.

The department trains intern doctors in the specialty “Infectious diseases” and other related specialties (“General practice-family medicine”, “Internal diseases”, “Dentistry”, “Dermatovenereology”, “Surgery”, “Ophthalmology”, Emergency medicine”).

The department also conducts professional development of doctors: cycles of thematic improvement “Actual issues of diagnosis, treatment and prevention of infectious diseases” for infectious diseases doctors, therapists, general practitioners-family medicine, anesthesiologists and “Modern approaches to diagnosis, treatment and prevention of viral diseases of hepatitis” for infectious diseases doctors, therapists, general practitioners-family medicine, obstetricians-gynecologists, surgeons, phthisis doctors, training of students of specialization cycles and internships in the specialties “General practice-family medicine”, “Epidemiology”, “Endocrinology”, “Physical and rehabilitation medicine”, “Orthopedic dentistry”, “Surgical dentistry”, “Pediatric dentistry”, “Cardiology”, “Thoracic surgery”, “Ultrasound diagnostics”, “Vascular surgery”, etc.