Epidermolysis bullosa care in Austria and the Epidermolysis Bullosa House Austria

Abstract

The Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB) House Austria is a special unit for the multidisciplinary management of children and adults with EB. Major advances in EB care have been made possible by a multidisciplinary approach including most of the medical specialties offered at the General Hospital in Salzburg. The EB House Austria is independently funded by the support group DEBRA Austria. As the EB House Austria fulfills all criteria for a European Union reference center, as stated by the Rare Disease Task Force in 2005, the authors hope that in the near future the EB House Austria will be accepted as such on a European Union level and that they can soon get financial support from this side. This support would be of even more importance in the moment when a causative cure, which is of course supposed to be a cost-intensive gene therapy, is available.