Clinical characteristics of pediatric patients with COVID-19 between Omicron era vs. pre-Omicron era

IntroductionDetailed data on clinical characteristics in children with the omicron strain of SARS-COV-2 are limited.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective observational study of children with COVID-19 at the National Center for Child Health and Development to evaluate the clinical manifestations during and before the emergence of the omicron variant. Only symptomatic patients without underlying diseases were included. Participants were divided into two temporal groups: the “omicron era” (1/2022–2/2022) and the “pre-omicron era,” where the delta variant predominated (7/2021–11/2021). The patients were subclassified into an older vaccine-eligible group (aged 12–17 years), a younger vaccine-eligible group (aged 5–11 years), and a vaccine-ineligible group (aged 0–4 years).ResultsWe compared 113 patients in the omicron era with 106 in the pre-omicron era. Most patients in both eras had non-severe disease, and no patients required mechanical ventilation or died. Among patients aged 0–4 years, sore throat and hoarseness were more common during the omicron era than the pre-omicron era (11.1% vs. 0.0% and 11.1% vs. 1.5%, respectively). Croup syndrome was diagnosed in all patients with hoarseness. Among patients aged 5–11 years, vomiting was more frequent during the omicron era (47.2%) than during the pre-omicron era (21.7%). Cough and rhinorrhea were less common during the omicron era in patients aged 0–4 and 5–11 years, respectively, than during the pre-omicron era.ConclusionsIn children with COVID-19, clinical manifestations differed between the omicron and pre-omicron eras. In the Omicron era, croup syndrome was more frequent in vaccine-ineligible children.     

儿童肺炎克雷伯菌血流感染临床特征及菌株药物敏感性分析

摘要：目的 探讨儿童肺炎克雷伯菌血流感染(Klebsiella pneumoniae bloodstream infection, KPBSI)临床特征及肺炎克雷伯 菌(Klebsiella pneumoniae, KP)对常用抗菌药物的敏感性，为儿童KPBSI合理治疗提供参考。方法 回顾性分析2014年1月至2019 年12月在重庆医科大学附属儿童医院住院的KPBSI患儿临床资料。结果 共纳入110例患儿，64例(58.2%)为院内感染，72例 (65.5%)有基础疾病，以血液系统肿瘤最多见。110例患儿PRISM Ⅲ评分为16.0(7.0~20.8)，其中74例(67.3%)发生脓毒症，15例 (13.6%)发生脓毒性休克，18例(16.4%)发生呼吸衰竭，15例(13.6%)需有创机械通气，院内死亡共13例(11.8%)。KP菌株对阿米卡 星、碳青霉烯类抗菌药物敏感率＞90%，对头孢噻肟、头孢曲松和头孢他啶的敏感率分别为58.3%、60.9%和70.9%，对头孢哌 酮/舒巴坦和哌拉西林/他唑巴坦的敏感率分别为59.5%和82.7%。检出ESBLs+菌株39株(39/86，45.3%)，耐碳青霉烯类肺炎克雷 伯菌(CRKP)菌株10株(10/110，9.1%)，ESBLs+KP菌株和CRKP在各年龄组间分布无统计学差异。结论 儿童KPBSI多见于有基 础疾病的患儿，脓毒症、脓毒性休克和呼吸衰竭发生率高；KP菌株对头孢他啶和哌拉西林/他唑巴坦敏感性较高，可经验性治 疗轻症KPBSI患儿。     

Performance of EAST in diagnosing inhalant allergens in children with allergic rhinitis

The performance of enzyme linked immunosorbent assays (EAST) for identifying six indoor allergens was evaluated using skin prick test (SPT) as reference tests in 154 children with allergic rhinitis. Sensitivity of EAST ranged from 9% (cat) to 54% (HDM) with specificity of 74%(cockroach) to 100% (cat) with an agreement ranged from 58 to 86%. Cut off values ?> ?0.35 kU/L showed best sensitivity and specificity. Our findings agree with extant literature which suggests that the ability of EAST to determine the precipitating allergen is moderate. Assays for definitively identifying the inhalant allergen are currently not available.     

Systematic review of clinical practice guidelines on the management of community acquired pneumonia in children

Childhood community acquired pneumonia (CAP) is the leading cause of mortality in children under 5 years worldwide. Clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) may be limited by method of development, scope of recommendations and the quality of supporting evidence. This study systematically identified, appraised and compared the recommendations of CPGs for the management of paediatric CAP using the AGREE II tool.The systematic review yielded 1409 non-duplicate results, of which 14 CPGs were appraised. Four of the fourteen CPGs were deemed high quality. Most CPGs were considered low-medium quality with ‘rigour of development’ and ‘applicability’ the weakest domains. These areas should be considered in deriving CPGs in the future. Recommendations were generally similar across all guidelines; however, there was notable heterogeneity in three areas. This suggests the need for further evidence to guide management decisions on oxygen saturation thresholds for admission, the utility of investigations such as acute phase reactants, and the duration of antibiotic therapy.     

Phase 0 Study of Vandetanib-Eluting Radiopaque Embolics as a Preoperative Embolization Treatment in Patients with Resectable Liver Malignancies

PurposeTo assess the safety and tolerability of a vandetanib-eluting radiopaque embolic (BTG-002814) for transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) in patients with resectable liver malignancies.Materials and MethodsThe VEROnA clinical trial was a first-in-human, phase 0, single-arm, window-of-opportunity study. Eligible patients were aged ≥18 years and had resectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) (Child-Pugh A) or metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). Patients received 1 mL of BTG-002814 transarterially (containing 100 mg of vandetanib) 7–21 days prior to surgery. The primary objectives were to establish the safety and tolerability of BTG-002814 and determine the concentrations of vandetanib and the N-desmethyl vandetanib metabolite in the plasma and resected liver after treatment. Biomarker studies included circulating proangiogenic factors, perfusion computed tomography, and dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging.ResultsEight patients were enrolled: 2 with HCC and 6 with mCRC. There was 1 grade 3 adverse event (AE) before surgery and 18 after surgery; 6 AEs were deemed to be related to BTG-002814. Surgical resection was not delayed. Vandetanib was present in the plasma of all patients 12 days after treatment, with a mean maximum concentration of 24.3 ng/mL (standard deviation ± 13.94 ng/mL), and in resected liver tissue up to 32 days after treatment (441–404,000 ng/g). The median percentage of tumor necrosis was 92.5% (range, 5%–100%). There were no significant changes in perfusion imaging parameters after TACE.ConclusionsBTG-002814 has an acceptable safety profile in patients before surgery. The presence of vandetanib in the tumor specimens up to 32 days after treatment suggests sustained anticancer activity, while the low vandetanib levels in the plasma suggest minimal release into the systemic circulation. Further evaluation of this TACE combination is warranted in dose-finding and efficacy studies.