Bladder Wall Telangiectasia in a Patient with Ataxia-Telangiectasia and How to Manage?

Ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T) is a rare neurodegenerative, inherited disease causing severe morbidity. Oculocutaneous telangiectasias are almost constant findings among the affected cases as telangiectasia is considered the main clinical finding for diagnosis. Vascular abnormalities in organs have been reported infrequently but bladder wall telangiectasias are extremely rare. We aimed to report recurrent hemorrhage from bladder wall telangiectasia in a 9-year-old boy with A-T who had received intravenous cyclophosphamide for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Since A-T patients are known to be more susceptible to chemical agents, we suggested that possibly cyclophosphamide was the drug which induced bladder wall injury in this patient

Mikobakteriyel hastalıklara mendel duyarlılığı hastalarının genetik ve klinik profili; tek merkez deneyimi

Objective: Mendelian susceptibility to mycobacterial disease (MSMD) is a subgroup of primary immunodeficiencies which develops with the Bacille Calmette–Guérin (BCG) vaccine or non-tuberculous mycobacterial infections. The clinical symptoms have a broad spectrum, from localized to disseminated infections. Materials and Methods: Herein, we performed whole-exome sequencing (WES) on 13 patients with MSMD phenotype. All variants were confirmed by Sanger sequencing. The mean age was 8.41 years (min 3 – max 14 years), and the mean age of symptom onset was 4.6 years in our cohort. Results: We found previously identified IFNGR1 (n=1), IFNGR2 (n=1), TYK2 (n=1), IL12RB1 (n=1), and CYBB (n=1) gene variants in nine patients. Our patients mostly suffered from lymphadenitis (61.5%), osteomyelitis (38%), and miliary tuberculosis (31%). All patients except one had had the BCG vaccination. Two patients developed BCGitis after vaccination. Three patients suffered from disseminated BCG infection (BCGosis). Conclusion: Our findings show the importance of molecular diagnosis in patients with severe infections as an approach for understanding the genetic basis of infectious diseases and deciding on treatment options. The deficiency of IFN-mediated immunity genes plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis of MSMD and must be considered in pediatric patients with BCGitis.Amaç: Mikobakteriyel hastalığa (MSMD) Mendel duyarlılığı, Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) aşısı veya tüberküloz dışı mikobakteriyel enfeksiyonlarla gelişen primer immün yetmezliklerin bir alt grubudur. Klinik semptomlar, lokalize enfeksiyondan yayılmış enfeksiyona kadar geniş bir spektruma sahiptir. Gereç ve Yöntem: Bu çalışmada; MSMD fenotipli 13 hastada tüm ekzom dizileme (WES) yaptık. Tüm varyantlar Sanger dizileme ile doğrulandı. Bizim kohortumuzda ortalama yaş 8.41 yıl (en az 3 – en fazla 14 yıl) ve ortalama semptom başlangıç yaşı 4.6 idi. Bulgular: Dokuz hastada; IFNGR1 (n=2), IFNGR2 (n=1), TYK2 (n=1), IL12RB1 (n=1) ve CYBB (n=1) gen varyantları bulduk. Hastalarımızda en çok lenfadenit (%61,5), osteomiyelit (%38) ve miliyer tüberküloz (%31) mevcuttu. Biri hariç tüm hastalara BCG aşısı yapıldı. İki hastada aşılamadan sonra BCGitis gelişti. Üç hasta, yayılmış BCG enfeksiyonundan (BCGosis) muzdaripti. Sonuç: Bulgularımız, enfeksiyon hastalıklarının genetik temelinin anlaşılmasında ve tedavi seçeneklerine karar verilmesinde bir yaklaşım olarak ağır enfeksiyonlu hastalarda moleküler tanının önemini göstermektedir. IFN aracılı bağışıklık genlerinin eksikliği, MSMD’nin patogenezinde çok önemli bir rol oynar ve BCGitis’li pediatrik hastalarda düşünülmelidir

Bladder Wall Telangiectasia in a Patient with Ataxia-Telangiectasia and How to Manage?

Ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T) is a rare neurodegenerative, inherited disease causing severe morbidity. Oculocutaneous telangiectasias are almost constant findings among the affected cases as telangiectasia is considered the main clinical finding for diagnosis. Vascular abnormalities in organs have been reported infrequently but bladder wall telangiectasias are extremely rare. We aimed to report recurrent hemorrhage from bladder wall telangiectasia in a 9-year-old boy with A-T who had received intravenous cyclophosphamide for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Since A-T patients are known to be more susceptible to chemical agents, we suggested that possibly cyclophosphamide was the drug which induced bladder wall injury in this patient

Bladder Wall Telangiectasia in a Patient with Ataxia-Telangiectasia and How to Manage?

Ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T) is a rare neurodegenerative, inherited disease causing severe morbidity. Oculocutaneous telangiectasias are almost constant findings among the affected cases as telangiectasia is considered the main clinical finding for diagnosis. Vascular abnormalities in organs have been reported infrequently but bladder wall telangiectasias are extremely rare. We aimed to report recurrent hemorrhage from bladder wall telangiectasia in a 9-year-old boy with A-T who had received intravenous cyclophosphamide for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Since A-T patients are known to be more susceptible to chemical agents, we suggested that possibly cyclophosphamide was the drug which induced bladder wall injury in this patient

Coronavirus infections in childhood and vaccine studies

In late December 2019, a new coronavirus (CoV) called the severe acute respiratory syndrome CoV 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which had not been detected in humans before, caused a worldwide pandemic. Owing to the highly infectious nature of this virus, it spread rapidly from person to person despite the warnings of the World Health Organization and all the measures taken by the governments. Although it has been reported that SARS-CoV-2 is more likely to infect the elderly, all age groups are susceptible to this virus, including newborns. CoV disease 2019 (COVID-19) symptoms seem to be less severe in children than in adults, but similar to the 2003 severe acute respiratory syndrome epidemic, in the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of cases and the risk of serious diseases increase as age increases. The treatment of COVID-19 is still challenging, especially in children, and the virus continues to cause death worldwide. The safest and most controlled way to effectively and sustainably prevent COVID-19 in a society is to have an effective and safe vaccine and to successfully vaccinate the majority of the population. It is possible that vaccines with safety and efficacy that have been proven in phase III trials will be effective in handling COVID-19

Diagnosis of primary immunodeficiency diseases in pediatric patients hospitalized for recurrent, severe, or unusual infections

Background: Primary immunodeficiency diseases (PID) usually presents itself with recurrent, severe, and unusual infections, along with autoimmunity and various other malignancies. But, the diversity of PID often makes the diagnosis of patients difficult for physicians other than clinical immunologists. This study aimed to describe the characteristics of patients diagnosed with PIDs during the inpatient treatment for infectious diseases, and to highlight the cases in which a PID diagnosis should be considered. Methods: The clinical, immunological, and molecular features of 81 pediatric patients treated for infectious diseases, who were diagnosed with a PID during hospitalization was retrospectively analyzed. The diagnosis was based on the PID criteria of the International Union of Immunological Societies. Results: The five main PID sub-types were identified. Predominantly, antibody deficiencies were the most common (61.7%) group. The average delay in diagnosis was 34.6 months, and the positive family history rate was 24.7%, while the consanguineous marriage rate was 45.7%. Around thirty-five (43%) patients were found to have mutated PID-related genes. While lower respiratory tract infections were the most common symptom, a fever of unknown origin was another remarkable diagnosis. Eight (9.9%) patients underwent allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Conclusions: Clinicians should consider a PID diagnosis, especially in the cases of recurrent, severe, or atypical infections. Increased knowledge of the alarm features of PID can promote early diagnosis

Diagnostic and Prognostic Biomarkers of Coronavirus Disease 2019 in Children

Predictors of early diagnosis and severe infection in children with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which has killed more than 4 million people worldwide, have not been identified. However, some biomarkers, including cytokines and chemokines, are associated with the diagnosis, pathogenesis and severity of COVID-19 in adults. We examined whether such biomarkers can be used to predict the diagnosis and prognosis of COVID-19 in pediatric patients. Eighty-nine children were included in the study, comprising three patient groups of 69 patients (6 severe, 36 moderate and 27 mild) diagnosed with COVID-19 by real-time polymerase chain reaction observed for 2-216 months and clinical findings and 20 healthy children in the same age group. Hemogram, coagulation, inflammatory parameters and serum levels of 16 cytokines and chemokines were measured in blood samples and were analyzed and compared with clinical data. Interleukin 1-beta (IL-1 beta), interleukin-12 (IL-12) and interferon gamma-induced protein 10 (IP-10) levels were significantly higher in the COVID-19 patients (p = 0.035, p = 0.006 and p < 0.001). Additionally, D-dimer and IP-10 levels were higher in the severe group (p = 0.043 for D-dimer, area under the curve = 0.743, p = 0.027 for IP-10). Lymphocytes, C-reactive protein and procalcitonin levels were not diagnostic or prognostic factors in pediatric patients (p = 0.304, p = 0.144 and p = 0.67). Increased IL-1 beta, IL-12 and IP-10 levels in children with COVID-19 are indicators for early diagnosis, and D-dimer and IP-10 levels are predictive of disease severity. In children with COVID-19, these biomarkers can provide information on prognosis and enable early treatment

Multicenter prospective surveillance study of viral agents causing meningoencephalitis.

The frequency of bacterial factors causing central nervous system infections has decreased as a result of the development of our national immunization program. In this study, it is aimed to obtain the data of our local surveillance by defining the viral etiology in cases diagnosed with meningoencephalitis for 1 year. Previously healhty 186 children, who applied with findings suggesting viral meningoencephalitis to 8 different tertiary health centers between August 2018 and August 2019, in Istanbul, were included. The cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) sample was evaluated by polymerase chain reaction. The M:F ratio was 1.24 in the patient group, whose age ranged from 1 to 216 months (mean 40.2 +/- 48.7). Viral factor was detected in 26.8%. Enterovirus was the most common agent (24%) and followed by Adenovirus (22%) and HHV type 6 (22%). In the rest of the samples revealed HHV type 7 (10%), EBV (6%), CMV (6%), HSV type 1 (6%), Parvovirus (4%) and VZV (2%). The most common symptoms were fever (79%) and convulsions (45.7%). Antibiotherapy and antiviral therapy was started 48.6% and 4% respectively. Mortality and sequela rate resulted 0.53% and 3.7%, respectively. This highlights the importance of monitoring trends in encephalitis in Turkey with aview to improving pathogen diagnosis for encephalitis and rapidly identifying novel emerging encephalitis-causing pathogens that demand public health action especially in national immunisation programme