On March 26, Department of Neurology of Qinghai Provincial People's Hospital received a patient sitting in a wheelchair. The patient reported weakness of bilateral lower limbs complicated with muscular atrophy for two years, and two relatives in the family also developed similar conditions with unknown causes. No definite diagnosis and treatment had been delivered for them. To confirm the diagnosis, Professor Cao Hongmei, residing in Qinghai Provincial People's Hospital, received the patient and suggested contacting Professor Dang Jingxia, an expert of rare neuromuscular diseases from Department of Neurology of the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University (XJTU), to conduct a remote online consultation for this patient.

After relevant examinations and full preparations, the first online consultation between Shaanxi and Qinghai provinces was conducted. During the online consultation, Attending Physician Qin Xing from Department of Neurology of our hospital gave a detailed explanation on the pathogenesis, clinical manifestations, diagnosis and treatment of motor neuron disease, a rare diseasein clinical practice. Subsequently, Professor Dang Jingxia summarized clinical manifestations and characteristics of this patient, delivered qualitative and differential diagnosis and provided a treatment regimen.

Although the incidence of rare diseases is relatively low, the identification rate is low and clinical prognosis is poor, which captivates increasing attention from physicians. As one of the first-batch affiliations of National Medical Center, our hospital is devoted to actively promoting the awareness of rare diseases and resolving bottleneck problems. To drive the construction of National Medical Center, Shaanxi and Qinghai provinces joined hands to hold online consultation, aiming to solve difficult issues encountered in the diagnosis and treatment for patients with rare diseases in Qinghai province.