Dear Colleagues,

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and rare diseases present a current and future public health challenge in pediatrics.

NCDs represent a set of disorders resulting from the interaction of genetic, physiological, environmental and behavioral factors (physical inactivity and unhealthy diets, obesity and consumption of tobacco or alcohol),  and are often associated with a long duration and slow progression. These conditions include cardiovascular diseases, autoimmune diseases, diabetes, preventable cancers, chronic respiratory diseases, mental health condition and injuries. NCDs tend to manifest in adulthood; however, they have their origins in conditions and behaviors adopted during childhood and adolescence. 

Rare diseases are defined as those affecting less than 200.000 individuals in the US or less than 1 in 2.000 people in Europe. There are over 6000 known rare diseases,  75% of which affect children; 80% of these cases are of genetic origin. They involve musculoskeletal, respiratory, immune, nervous, cardiovascular, hematologic, urinary, endocrine and metabolic systems.

Children affected by NCDs and rare diseases often face a lifelong challenge in managing and treating their conditions. For many NCDs, the best option for reducing disease burden is early prevention; for rare disease, an early diagnosis is crucial to optimize support measures. Treating NCDs and rare diseases requires close cooperation between experts of various medical disciplines in an interdisciplinary setting. The evolution of personalized and precision medicine revolves around improving our understanding of the pathogenic mechanisms of diseases and ameliorating the management and monitoring of these childhood diseases.

This Special Issue, “Non-communicable diseases and rare diseases in pediatrics: management, treatment and prevention strategies”, provides the reader with an up-to-date overview on important progress in the diagnosis, management, complications, treatment and prevention strategies in children with NCDs and rare diseases.  

Clinicians and researchers are invited to submit relevant original articles from both clinical and research fields, narrative and systemic reviews, editorials and case reports.

Prof. Dr. Gianvincenzo Zuccotti
Dr. Valeria Calcaterra
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Children is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• non-communicable diseases
• rare diseases
• management
• treatment
• prevention strategies
• obesity
• children
• pediatrics