Papaveretum infusions in infants under 6 months of age

The effectiveness of a continuous low dose papaveretum infusion for the relief of postoperative pain was assessed in 29 infants aged 1-6 months nursed on the infant surgical ward following major abdominal surgery. Trained nursing staff were able to adjust the dosage within prescribed guidelines and satisfactory analgesia was obtained with a regimen which delivered up to 0.0375 mg/kg/hour, approximately half the dose recommended in children older than 12 months. There was one case of clinically significant respiratory depression.     

Renal tumors in infants less than 6 months of age

Background/purpose

Renal tumors are rare in infants less than 6 months of age and may have associated paraneoplastic symptoms. To better define the characteristics of these tumors the authors reviewed their 10-year institutional experience.

Methods

The authors searched the pathology database to identify all renal tumors resected at their institution since 1992 (after IRB approval and guidelines). The clinical presentation, operative details, pathology, and outcome for all children ≤ 6 months of age were reviewed.

Results

Of 101 children who had renal tumors resected during this period, 11 (11 %) were 6 months of age or less. Histopathologic examination showed congenital mesoblastic nephroma (CMN) in 7 patients (4 with cellular features), Wilms’ tumor in 3 patients, and ossifying renal tumor of infancy in 1. Renal masses were detected antenatally in 2 patients and during newborn examination in 1 patient; however, the mean age at diagnosis was 72 ± 18 days. Ten children had a palpable abdominal mass, 3 had gross hematuria, and 6 had hypertension (4 CMN; 2 Wilms’). Only 1 child had hypercalcemia (cellular CMN). Ten infants had nephroureterectomy, and 1 had a partial nephrectomy. All patients had either stage I or II disease. At follow-up (mean 4.2 ± 1.2 years) 10 patients are alive with no evidence of disease. One newborn with hydrops and a very large congenital Wilms’ tumor had abdominal compartment syndrome and died during surgery.

Conclusions

About 10% of renal masses may occur in infants less than 6 months of age. Although mesoblastic nephroma is the most common renal tumor in this age group, Wilms’ tumor also may be seen. Paraneoplastic syndromes, such as hypertension and hypercalcemia, are common in these infants and are not specific for tumor type. These tumors generally present at an early stage and have an excellent prognosis overall.     

Closed pulmonary valvotomy in infants under 6 months of age: report of 14 consecutive cases without mortality.

Fourteen infants, all under 6 months of age, underwent surgery for the relief of severe valvar pulmonary stenosis. A modified Brock (transinfundibular valvotomy) procedure was performed in all cases. Dilatation of the pulmonary valve with a mosquito clamp and biliary dilator is the basis of the modified operation. All infants survived the operation. In two patients there is residual, significant pulmonary stenosis, and in two additional cases pulmonary regurgitation is present.     

Normal ranges of hip motion in infants six weeks, three months and six months of age.

Flexion contracture, internal rotation and external rotation of the hip were reported in 40 infants at 6 weeks and 3 months and in an independent sample of 40 infants at 6 months of age. Population means and normal ranges of motion were determined for use in the evaluation of hip problems and their treatment. A mean hip flexion contracture of 19 degrees was present at 6 weeks of age, decreasing to 7 degrees by three months, but still persisting at 6 months suggesting that forceful extension of the hip in infants may be contraindicated. Hip flexion contracture decreased in every child from 6 weeks to three months. In all cases, external rotation was greater than internal rotation. Internal rotation greater than external rotation before the age of 6 months appears contrary to normal development. There was a significant correlation between the changes in hip flexion contracture and internal rotation from 6 weeks to 3 months. An interesting extension of this study would be a longitudinal follow-up of infants beyond 6 months of age to further define these developmental trends.     

Surgical treatment of interrupted aortic arch in infants under three months of age

From March, 1982, through March, 1988, 8 infants less than 3 months of age underwent surgical treatment of interrupted aortic arch. Five patients had IAA type A and 3 patients had type B. Seven patients with associated VSD underwent staged operations and 1 infant with aortopulmonary window underwent primary repair off cardiopulmonary bypass. Aortic arch reconstruction was by subclavian aortic anastomosis (6) or large tube graft (8 mm) interposition (2) combined with pulmonary artery banding (5). All seven patients with associated VSD survived the first-stage operation. One patient subsequently underwent pulmonary artery banding, two underwent patch aortoplasty and four patients underwent intracardiac repair and removal of a pulmonary artery band, with six survivors (86%). The operative death occurred in an infant in whom modified Damus-Kaye-Stansel operation was carried out for severe subaortic stenosis, which rerouting all left ventricular blood through VSD and the main pulmonary artery into the ascending aorta and reconstructing right ventricular-distal pulmonary artery connection by a valved external conduit. All six surviving patients are doing well at present (mean follow up of 3 years) without any significant pressure gradient between the ascending and thoracic aorta. Based on these data we conclude: (1) Aortic arch reconstruction and pulmonary artery banding can be reliably performed even in critically ill infants with IAA and isolated VSD. (2) The primary repair will provide better chance of survival in infants with IAA associated with significant LVOTO, truncus arteriosus or aortopulmonary window that do not readily lend themselves to pulmonary artery banding.     

Longitudinal study of calcium intake, physical activity, and bone mineral content in infants 6-18 months of age.

Although increased physical activity early in life is recommended for optimizing bone health, no controlled trials on the effect of activity on bone mass accretion during periods of rapid growth have been reported. The purpose of this study was to determine whether infants randomized to a 1 year gross motor activity program had a greater bone mass accretion than infants randomized to a fine motor activity program. The gross motor program included activities that focused on loading the skeleton and were performed for 15-20 minutes/day, 5 days/week by study personnel. Infants (n = 72) were enrolled at 6 months of age, and total body bone mineral content (BMC), 3-day diet records, and activity levels were obtained at 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18 months. BMC was associated with weight, length, and bone area at all ages and correlated with earlier calcium intakes. Calcium intake appeared to modify the effect of gross motor activity on bone mass accretion; infants in both groups had similar bone accretion at moderately high calcium intakes, but at low calcium intakes infants in the gross motor program had less bone accretion than infants in the fine motor program. Compliant infants in the gross motor group had lower BMC at 18 months compared with noncompliant infants. These results indicate that BMC in infants is related to calcium intake, and we speculate that participation in a gross motor program during rapid bone growth may lead to reduced bone accretion in the presence of a moderate to moderately low calcium intake.     

The induction dose of propofol in infants 1-6 months of age and in children 10-16 years of age

The propofol dose needed for satisfactory induction of anesthesia was determined in 22 infants 1-6 months of age and 22 children 10-16 yr of age. A single bolus of propofol was given over 10 s. Thirty seconds after injection the lid reflex was tested and the anesthesia mask was applied. The patient was considered to be asleep if there were no gross movements during the next 30 s while the patient breathed O2. The dose required for satisfactory induction in 50% of patients (ED50) (+/- SE) was 3.0 +/- 0.2 mg/kg in infants and 2.4 +/- 0.1 mg/kg in older children (P less than 0.02). Pain on injection occurred in 50% of the infants and 18% of the children.     

Inguinal hernia repair in infants less than six months of age.

Previous studies reviewing the morbidity and mortality of infant inguinal hernia surgery have all been done in university hospital settings. From our community-based tertiary hospital, 100 consecutive cases on infants less than six months of age, undergoing inguinal hernia repair, were reviewed. No infants were excluded. Sixty-eight were full term and 32 were premature. A number of different variables were analyzed and none appeared to affect outcome. Infants were followed for three to five years. There were no true complications in any infant in this series, although six infants developed wound erythema that resolved spontaneously. Parents were given a questionnaire to subjectively evaluate the infant before and after surgery with 78% showing improvement.     

Cholelithiasis in newborns and infants.

Cholelithiasis in infants is rare, and has usually been associated with hemolysis, ileal disease, congenital anomalies of the biliary tree, hyperalimentation, and prolonged fasting. With the increased use of abdominal ultrasonography (US), more cases of cholelithiasis are being discovered. We report our experience with 13 infants diagnosed on abdominal US to have gallstones. There were 9 boys and 4 girls with an average age at diagnosis of 2.6 months (range, 0 to 9 months). Predisposing factors could be identified in only 6 of the 13 patients. Two patients with obstructive jaundice underwent cholecystectomy and common bile duct exploration. One patient with choledocolithiasis and common bile duct dilatation was observed. His stone passed spontaneously, with resolution of symptoms. Ten patients without cholestasis remained asymptomatic, with disappearance of lithiasis in five of them. Neonatal cholelithiasis is more common than previously suspected; it seems to affect males more often than females and is usually not associated with known predisposing factors. It appears to be a temporary, self-limiting phenomenon, and an aggressive approach is not warranted in the asymptomatic infant. Surgical or radiological intervention should be reserved for the symptomatic patients or those with underlying lithogenic disorders.     

孕妇维生素D缺乏及其对胎儿的影响

目的维生素D缺乏累及的人群非常广泛,而且与多种疾病的发生有关,特别是孕妇维生素D缺乏还可能影响到胎儿的健康。目前关于我国女性维生素D的资料报道很少。本研究的目的是了解健康孕妇(孕15~21w)以及同龄未孕对照组妇女维生素D水平以及孕妇维生素D水平对新生儿出生大小的影响。方法本文随机选取单胎妊娠孕妇63例和同龄对照妇女35例,用酶联免疫的方法测定血中25-羟维生素D水平。结果显示99%的检测病例25-羟维生素D水平低于正常值(≥75 nmol/L),有近93%的妇女为维生素D缺乏(50 nmol/L)。孕妇25-羟维生素D水平(28.40±9.19 noml/L)明显低于对照组妇女(38.46±10.77 noml/L;P0.001),两组维生素D缺乏的比率分别为孕妇96.8%,对照组85.7%,但重度维生素D缺乏的病例孕妇组接近半数,而对照组为零。新生儿身长与孕妇25-羟维生素D水平成显著正相关(r=0.323;P0.01。结论我国北方女性特别是孕妇是维生素D缺乏患病的高危人群,而且孕妇维生素D缺乏可能会影响到胎儿的生长发育。应该积极采用有效的措施防治维生素D的缺乏,从而减少维生素D缺乏对健康的影响对提高人口质量将具有重要的意义。     

Modified Blalock-Taussig shunts: results in infants less than 3 months of age.

The optimal procedure for shunting palliation in cyanotic infants remains to be determined. Sixty-two infants less than 3 months of age underwent 63 modified Blalock-Taussig shunts. Their age range at operation was 1 to 84 days (mean, 16 +/- 20 days). Shunts were constructed using 5-mm polytetrafluorethylene tubes in 20 patients and 4-mm polytetrafluoroethylene grafts in 43 patients. There were 13 early deaths (21%; CL, 15% to 27%) of which three deaths (5%; confidence limits, 2% to 9%) were shunt related. The survivors were followed up from 6 to 53 months (mean, 29 +/- 12.5 months). Shunt failure (occlusion, inadequate palliation) occurred in 27 patients. The overall probability rate of adequate shunt function was 58% +/- 8% at 2 years. Univariate and multivariate analyses showed that the size of the graft was a risk factor of shunt failure. Severe distortion of the pulmonary arterial branch was noted in 12 patients. The inferences are: (1) modified Blalock-Taussig shunts provide satisfactory early palliation but late shunt failure is frequent; (2) similar results should be obtained with other shunting procedures; and (3) the optimal procedure should be selected for each cyanotic infant on an individual basis.     

Antireflux surgery in children under 3 months of age

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to analyze the indications and results of fundoplication in 110 infants under 3 months of age. METHODS: A retrospective review was conducted on the charts of all infants operated on for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) at the UCLA Medical Center from January 1980 to December 1997. There were 59 boys and 51 girls. Recurrent emesis was the indication for operation in 62 of 110 infants, and respiratory symptoms in 85 of 110, with 54 of 110 having both. Neurological impairment was present in 32%. Prematurity was present in 21%; 35% had associated anomalies. Overall, 81 of 110 infants (73.6%) had one or more associated major malformations or disorders. Reflux was confirmed by upper gastrointestinal series findings in 63 of 78, esophageal pH monitoring in 60 of 62, and endoscopy in five of seven. RESULTS: Mean age at operation was 1.8+/-0.1 months and mean weight was 3,686+/-90.2 g. A Nissen fundoplication was performed on 104 children, and six underwent a Thal procedure. Thirty-one had a gastric emptying procedure for delayed gastric emptying. Complications occurred in 7 infants. Emesis was controlled in 57 of 62 patients, aspiration in 38 of 48, and apneic spells in 54 of 57. Follow-up greater than 6 months was available for 73 patients. There were nine late deaths, all related to severe associated malformations. Seven patients required a redo fundoplication for recurrent reflux. CONCLUSIONS: Nissen fundoplication can be performed safely in symptomatic infants under 3 months of age with low mortality and morbidity rates and with resolution of the presenting symptoms in 79% of infants.