Dual marker one day pancreolauryl test.

There is a pressing need for a simple non-invasive test of exocrine pancreatic function for use in children. The pancreolauryl test has been modified by the addition of a second marker (mannitol) to achieve a single day test without the need for two timed urine collections. Six healthy subjects and nine patients with cystic fibrosis were studied. Fluorescein, fluorescein dilaurate, and mannitol were taken by mouth, alone or in combinations, followed by 10 hour urine collections in two hourly aliquots to study the comparative pharmacokinetics of these markers. Urinary fluorescein was determined spectrophotometrically and urinary mannitol enzymatically. When fluorescein dilaurate and mannitol were taken together and the results expressed as ratios of percentage fluorescein to percentage mannitol recovery (F:M ratio) (mean (SD)) there was clear discrimination between healthy subjects and those with cystic fibrosis regardless of enzyme replacement treatment (57.3 (18.2) v 3.4 (1.4) v 3.2 (1.6) respectively). The differences in F:M ratios reached statistical significance in urinary aliquots collected between two and eight hours after marker ingestion. This single day tubeless test will greatly simplify the investigation of the child with suspected exocrine pancreatic dysfunction.     

气促20天、呼吸困难1天

病史摘要男,2个月。因气促20d,气促加重伴咳嗽、呼吸困难、少尿1d入院。足月剖宫产,出生体重3150g,母孕期健康。查体:R100次/min,体重5400g。精神反应差,躁动,面色灰暗,表情淡漠。前囟(1.5×1.5)cm,平坦,双瞳孔等大、等圆,对光反应敏感,口唇及周围发绀,咽部充血,双侧扁桃体不大。双肺呼吸运动对称,三凹征阳性,双肺满布喘鸣音,呼气相延长,肺底部可及少量细湿罗音,心率180次/min,律齐,心音低钝,未及杂音。腹稍膨隆,肝于右肋下5cm,质中等,肝上界于右锁骨中线上第6肋间,脾未及。四肢活动少,温暖。颈软,神经系统正常。辅助检查:WBC5.13×109/L,…     

Bacteriologic and clinical efficacy of one day vs. three day intramuscular ceftriaxone for treatment of nonresponsive acute otitis media in children

BACKGROUND: One dose of intramuscular ceftriaxone has been recently licensed in the United States for the treatment of acute otitis media. However, data regarding the bacteriologic and clinical efficacy of this regimen in the treatment of nonresponsive acute otitis media are incomplete. OBJECTIVES: To determine the bacteriologic and clinical efficacy of a 1-day 50-mg/kg vs. a 3-day 50-mg/kg/day intramuscular ceftriaxone regimen in the treatment of nonresponsive acute otitis media in children. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In an open, prospective study 109 patients ages 3 to 36 months with culture-proved, nonresponsive acute otitis media were randomized to receive 1 (n = 49) or 3 (n = 60) 50-mg/kg/day intramuscular ceftriaxone doses, respectively. Middle ear fluid was aspirated for culture by tympanocentesis on the day of enrollment (Day 1); a second tympanocentesis with middle ear fluid culture was performed on Days 4 to 5. Additional middle ear fluid cultures were obtained if clinical relapse occurred after completion of therapy. Bacteriologic failure was defined by positive cultures on Days 4 to 5. Patients were followed until Day 28 after completion of therapy. Susceptibility of the middle ear pathogens was measured by E-test. RESULTS: Organisms recovered (n = 133) were Streptococcus pneumoniae (30 and 35 isolates for the 1-day and 3-day treatment group, respectively), Haemophilus influenzae (26 and 38, respectively) and Moraxella catarrhalis (n = 4). Of the 30 S. pneumoniae isolated from the 1-day group, 27 (90%) and 6 (20%) were nonsusceptible to penicillin and ceftriaxone, respectively; 9 of 27 (33%) were fully resistant to penicillin. Thirty-four (97%) and 6 (17%) of the 35 S. pneumoniae isolated from the 3-day group were nonsusceptible to penicillin and ceftriaxone, respectively; 16 of 34 (47%) were fully resistant to penicillin. Bacterial eradication of all H. influenzae and penicillin-susceptible S. pneumoniae was achieved in both treatment groups. Bacterial eradication of 14 of 27 (52%) and 33 of 34 (97%) penicillin-nonsusceptible S. pneumoniae was achieved in the 1-day and 3-day group, respectively. Seven (50%) of the 14 patients from the 2 groups who did not achieve bacterial eradication did not improve clinically on Days 4 to 5 and required additional ceftriaxone treatment. CONCLUSION: The 3-day intramuscular ceftriaxone regimen was significantly superior to the 1-day intramuscular ceftriaxone regimen in the treatment of nonresponsive acute otitis media caused by penicillin-resistant S. pneumoniae.     

持续发热8天伴颈部肿块1天

1病史摘要 患儿，男，9岁。因持续发热8d，发现颈部肿块1d于2003年8月14日入院？患儿于入院前8d无诱因下发热，体温波动在38．5～39-2℃，用退热药后可暂时下降，发热时无畏寒、乏力。在外院予红霉素、头孢拉定、阿齐霉素等治疗8d，体温仍不退。     

Visiting less than every day: a marker for later behavioral problems in Finnish preterm infants

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of parental visits during neonatal intensive care on the behavioral and emotional development of the child at school age. DESIGN: All premature infants born in Tampere University Hospital in Tampere, Finland, in 1989 who were admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit and who lived in the Tampere region (N = 67; 31 boys and 36 girls) formed the study group. Data on parental visits were collected from the hospital records. Child behavior was evaluated according to the Achenbach Child Behavior Checklist at the age of 7 to 8 years. A total of 48 (72%) of the mothers returned the questionnaires. RESULTS: The median number of visiting days per week was 6.2 for the mothers and 4.7 for the fathers. The children whose mothers visited daily had fewer behavioral and emotional problems at school age than those who had had fewer visits from their mothers (P = .04). The visiting frequency of the fathers was not significantly associated with later behavioral and emotional problems of the child. In this study, infrequent visits by the mother were a stronger risk factor for later psychological development than the medical risks of the preterm infant. CONCLUSIONS: Infrequent visits by mothers to the neonatal intensive care unit seem to be a marker for their children's later behavioral and emotional problems. This emphasizes the significance of early parent-infant contact and the vulnerability in early interaction. Less frequent visits may also indicate factors influencing the parent-child relationship in a way that leads to subsequent behavioral problems.     

Denying the abusive head trauma denialists their day in court,one step at a time

Pediatric Radiology -     

Plasma testosterone response at 1st and 4th day after short- and long-term hCG stimulation test

Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) stimulation test is a reliable dynamic test for the evaluation of testicular function during childhood. Several protocols have been recommended but their reliability is controversial. In order to decide the best timing to measure stimulated testosterone levels in short- and long-term hCG protocols, we evaluated 83 prepubertal patients in two group. In group A, 34 patients with isolated micropenis and in group B, 49 inguinal cryptorchidic patients were enrolled. In group A short-term hCG protocol (3000 IU/m2/im/3 days) and in group B long-term hCG protocol (1500 IU/m2/im; thrice a week for 3 weeks) was administered. Blood samples were drawn at the initiation of the test and then at the 1st and 4th days after the last hCG injection. Each case's peak stimulated testosterone (Tmax) and the incremenet in plasma testosterone (deltaT) were calculated and compared with the 1st and 4th day responses within the group. In the short-term protocol the 4th day responses were higher than the 1st day responses (p<0.01). Interestingly, while four patients had insufficient responses at the 1st day, three had sufficient Leydig cell response at the 4th day. In the long-term protocol group, in contrast to the short-term group, the 1st day responses were higher than the 4th day (p<0.01). According to our results, while performing hCG test in a patient, if a short-term protocol is planned, it is more convenient to check the 4th day testosterone response. On the other hand, in a long-term protocol it is best to check the 1st day response. We suggest that even if a patient's 1st day response is inadequate, the 4th day response should be checked in order to avoid misdiagnosis.     

Abnormalities in surfactant in sudden infant death syndrome as a postmortem marker and possible test of risk

To determine whether physical abnormalities in lung surfactant, particularly inversion of the hysteresis between surface tension and surface area, are an effective postmortem marker for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).

Methodology:

Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) was employed to obtain lung rinsings from 55 infants under 24 months of age at autopsy, comprising 34 index cases and 21 controls. Folch reagent was used to extract the lipoid content which was then applied at two surface concentrations, fixed and BAL-determined (BALD), to the pool of a Langmuir trough in which surface tension (γ) was measured continuously by the Wilhelmy method as surface area ( A ) was cycled.

Results:

The γ: A loops from SIDS samples were inverted relative to controls (i.e. they were hysteresis reversed, this inversion being quantified by an empirical surface tension:area reversal (STAR) score). There was a wide scatter of STAR scores, but a critical value was found which offered a significant ( P = 0.017) separation of SIDS cases from controls for a fixed surface concentration and a highly significant separation ( P = 1.0 × 10^-4) for BALD surface concentrations. Differences in the yields of phospholipid and proteolipid, or their correlation to STAR scores, did not reach statistical significance.

Conclusions:

Inversion of the γ: A loops (i.e. hysteresis inversion) would appear to offer a better postmortem marker of SIDS than any reported previously, the procedure having potential for development as a prospective test indicating the risk of this disease.