Impact of opioid-free analgesia on pain severity and patient satisfaction after discharge from surgery: multispecialty, prospective cohort study in 25 countries

Background: Balancing opioid stewardship and the need for adequate analgesia following discharge after surgery is challenging. This study aimed to compare the outcomes for patients discharged with opioid versus opioid-free analgesia after common surgical procedures.Methods: This international, multicentre, prospective cohort study collected data from patients undergoing common acute and elective general surgical, urological, gynaecological, and orthopaedic procedures. The primary outcomes were patient-reported time in severe pain measured on a numerical analogue scale from 0 to 100% and patient-reported satisfaction with pain relief during the first week following discharge. Data were collected by in-hospital chart review and patient telephone interview 1 week after discharge.Results: The study recruited 4273 patients from 144 centres in 25 countries; 1311 patients (30.7%) were prescribed opioid analgesia at discharge. Patients reported being in severe pain for 10 (i.q.r. 1-30)% of the first week after discharge and rated satisfaction with analgesia as 90 (i.q.r. 80-100) of 100. After adjustment for confounders, opioid analgesia on discharge was independently associated with increased pain severity (risk ratio 1.52, 95% c.i. 1.31 to 1.76; P < 0.001) and re-presentation to healthcare providers owing to side-effects of medication (OR 2.38, 95% c.i. 1.36 to 4.17; P = 0.004), but not with satisfaction with analgesia (beta coefficient 0.92, 95% c.i. -1.52 to 3.36; P = 0.468) compared with opioid-free analgesia. Although opioid prescribing varied greatly between high-income and low- and middle-income countries, patient-reported outcomes did not.Conclusion: Opioid analgesia prescription on surgical discharge is associated with a higher risk of re-presentation owing to side-effects of medication and increased patient-reported pain, but not with changes in patient-reported satisfaction. Opioid-free discharge analgesia should be adopted routinely

Viral etiology of influenza-like illnesses during the influenza season between December 2011 and April 2012

The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of respiratory viruses responsible for respiratory tract infections in Turkish children during the 2011-2012 influenza season. Nasal swabs were obtained from patients with symptoms suggestive of an influenza-like illness between December 2011 and April 2012. Samples were analyzed with multiplex real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to help identify the causative viral pathogen. A total of 200 patients were enrolled in the study. A respiratory virus was detected successfully in 102 (51%) children; influenza A (H3N2) in 39.2%, influenza B in 23.5%, RSV in 15.6%, rhinovirus in 13.7%, bocavirus in 2.9%, coronavirus in 2.9%, and metapneumovirus in 0.9% of patients. Only one patient was co-infected with bocavirus and influenza A virus. A statistically significant difference in the mean age of presentation was observed between the various viral pathogens (P < 0.001). Patients with RSV were significantly younger whereas children infected with the influenza viruses were significantly older. Comparison of symptoms revealed that fever and headache occurred more frequently with the influenza viruses than the other viruses combined (P < 0.001, <0.05). Durations of symptoms such as fever, cough, nasal congestion, and rhinorrhea were also significantly longer in the influenza group (P < 0.001, <0.005, <0.001, <0.005, respectively). Demographic analyses revealed that the school/daycare attendance was the only parameter associated with a significantly increased risk for influenza infection. With an overall viral pathogen detection rate of 51%, findings of the present study suggest other respiratory pathogens, whether viral or bacterial, may also lead to hospital visits due to influenza-like illnesses in children. J. Med. Virol. 86:865-871, 2014. (c) 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc

Characteristics of hyperthermia and its complications in patients with Prader Willi syndrome

Thermoregulation problems, resulting in hypo- or hyperthermia, have been infrequently reported in children with Prader Willi syndrome (PWS), yet their clinical details remained unknown. The clinical characteristics of three infants with PWS are reported. Etiologies of high fever could not be identified in three children with PWS. One of these children was also admitted to the intensive care unit with extremely high body temperature in a life-threatening condition, similar to septic shock, without a plausible explanation. Hyperthermia may be a part of the clinical spectrum in young infants with PWS and should be carefully monitored, since it may cause life-threatening complications

DiMA: Sequence Diversity Dynamics Analyser for Viruses

Sequence diversity is one of the major challenges in the design of diagnostic, prophylactic and therapeutic interventions against viruses. Herein, we present DiMA, a tool designed to facilitate the dissection of sequence diversity dynamics for viruses. As a base, DiMA provides a quantitative overview of sequence diversity by use of Shannon's entropy, applied via a user-defined k-mer sliding window to an input alignment file. Distinctively, the key feature is that DiMA interrogates diversity dynamics by dissecting each k-mer position to various diversity motifs, defined based on the incidence of distinct sequences. At a given position, an index is a predominant sequence, while all the others are (total) variants to the index, sub-classified into the major (most common) variant, minor variants (occurring more than once and of frequency lower than the major), and the unique (singleton) variants. Moreover, DiMA allows for metadata enrichment of the motifs. DiMA is big data ready and provides an interactive output, depicting multiple facets of sequence diversity, with download options. It enables comparative genome/proteome diversity dynamics analyses, within and between sequences of viral species. The web server is publicly available at https://dima.bezmialem.edu.tr.Comment: 17 pages, 2 figures, 48 reference

Effectiveness of a New Bioequivalent Formulation of Oseltamivir (Enfluvir (R)) on 2010-2011 Seasonal Influenza Viruses: An Open Phase Iv Study

Objective: The aim of this multicenter prospective study was to evaluate the efficacy of a new bioequivalent formulation of oseltamivir for the treatment of influenza A, influenza B, and H1N1 during the 2010-2011 influenza season. Methods: We compared the symptoms and signs of 300 pediatric patients presenting to three university hospitals with an influenza-like illness between January and March 2011. Nasal swab specimens were collected from all children and tested by reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for influenza viruses. After randomization, half of the participants were prescribed oseltamivir, while the other half were observed conservatively. Forty patients who were followed-up for influenza prior to the study were also included in the evaluation. Results: Influenza was confirmed by RT-PCR in 129 children, 71 of whom were prescribed oseltamivir. The durations of the symptoms fever, cough, nasal congestion, and rhinorrhea were significantly shorter for patients who were treated with oseltamivir compared with untreated patients (p < 0.002 for all symptoms). Early initiation of oseltamivir therapy (within 48 h of the onset of symptoms) was associated with more favorable outcomes and an earlier recovery than in patients for whom treatment was delayed (beyond 48 h). Thirty-seven patients (28.7%) had H1N1, 44 (34.1%) had influenza A, 46 (35.7%) had influenza B, one (0.8%) had H1N1 plus influenza A, and one (0.8%) had influenza A plus influenza B viruses. In the comparison of the duration of symptoms according to the different virus types, a statistically significant difference was only observed in patients with influenza B who had a longer duration of cough (p < 0.001), nasal congestion (p < 0.001), and rhinorrhea (p < 0.001). Conclusions: Oseltamivir is an effective treatment for the management of seasonal influenza and H1N1, and should be initiated immediately without waiting for laboratory confirmation of diagnosis. (C) 2012 International Society for Infectious Diseases. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.WoSScopu

Antifungal consumption, indications and selection of antifungal drugs in paediatric tertiary hospitals in Turkey: Results from the first national point prevalence survey

Objectives: The aim of this point prevalence survey was to evaluate the consumption, indications and strategies of antifungal therapy in the paediatric population in Turkey

The epidemiology and economic impact of varicella-related hospitalizations in Turkey from 2008 to 2010: a nationwide survey during the pre-vaccine era (VARICOMP study)

Varicella can cause complications that are potentially serious and require hospitalization. Our current understanding of the causes and incidence of varicella-related hospitalization in Turkey is limited and sufficiently accurate epidemiological and economical information is lacking. The aim of this study was to estimate the annual incidence of varicella-related hospitalizations, describe the complications, and estimate the annual mortality and cost of varicella in children. VARICOMP is a multi-center study that was performed to provide epidemiological and economic data on hospitalization for varicella in children between 0 and 15 years of age from October 2008 to September 2010 in Turkey. According to medical records from 27 health care centers in 14 cities (representing 49.3% of the childhood population in Turkey), 824 children (73% previously healthy) were hospitalized for varicella over the 2-year period. Most cases occurred in the spring and early summer months. Most cases were in children under 5 years of age, and 29.5% were in children under 1 year of age. The estimated incidence of varicella-related hospitalization was 5.29-6.89 per 100,000 in all children between 0-15 years of age in Turkey, 21.7 to 28 per 100,000 children under 1 year of age, 9.8-13.8 per 100,000 children under 5 years of age, 3.96-6.52 per 100,000 children between 5 and 10 years of age and 0.42 to 0.71 per 100,000 children between 10 and 15 years of age. Among the 824 children, 212 (25.7%) were hospitalized because of primary varicella infection. The most common complications in children were secondary bacterial infection (23%), neurological (19.1%), and respiratory (17.5%) complications. Secondary bacterial infections (p < 0.001) and neurological complications (p < 0.001) were significantly more common in previously healthy children, whereas hematological complications (p < 0.001) were more commonly observed in children with underlying conditions. The median length of the hospital stay was 6 days, and it was longer in children with underlying conditions (< 0.001). The median cost of hospitalization per patient was $338 and was significantly higher in children with underlying conditions (p < 0.001). The estimated direct annual cost (not including the loss of parental work time and school absence) of varicella-related hospitalization in children under the age of 15 years in Turkey was$856,190 to $1,407,006. According to our estimates, 882 to 1,450 children are hospitalized for varicella each year, reflecting a population-wide occurrence of 466-768 varicella cases per 100,000 children. In conclusion, this study confirms that varicella-related hospitalizations are not uncommon in children, and two thirds of these children are otherwise healthy. The annual cost of hospitalization for varicella reflects only a small part of the overall cost of this disease, as only a very few cases require hospital admission. The incidence of this disease was higher in children < 1 year of age, and there are no prevention strategies for these children other than population-wide vaccination. Universal vaccination is therefore the only realistic option for the prevention of severe complications and deaths. The surveillance of varicella-associated complications is essential for monitoring of the impact of varicella immunization

Antifungal consumption, indications and selection of antifungal drugs in paediatric tertiary hospitals in Turkey: Results from the first national point prevalence survey

WOS: 000452555000048PubMed ID: 30121343Objectives: The aim of this point prevalence survey was to evaluate the consumption, indications and strategies of antifungal therapy in the paediatric population in Turkey. Methods: A point prevalence study was performed at 25 hospitals. In addition to general data on paediatric units of the institutes, the generic name and indication of antifungal drugs, the presence of fungal isolation and susceptibility patterns, and the presence of galactomannan test and high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) results were reviewed. Results: A total of 3338 hospitalised patients were evaluated. The number of antifungal drugs prescribed was 314 in 301 patients (9.0%). Antifungal drugs were mostly prescribed in paediatric haematology and oncology (PHO) units (35.2%), followed by neonatal ICUs (NICUs) (19.6%), paediatric services (18.3%), paediatric ICUs (PICUs) (14.6%) and haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) units (7.3%). Antifungals were used for prophylaxis in 147 patients (48.8%) and for treatment in 154 patients (50.0%). The antifungal treatment strategy in 154 patients was empirical in 77 (50.0%), diagnostic-driven in 29 (18.8%) and targeted in 48 (31.2%). At the point of decision-making for diagnostic-driven antifungal therapy in 29 patients, HRCT had not been performed in 1 patient (3.4%) and galactomannan test results were not available in 12 patients (41.4%). Thirteen patients (8.4%) were receiving eight different antifungal combination therapies. Conclusion: The majority of antifungal drugs for treatment and prophylaxis were prescribed in PHO and HSCT units (42.5%), followed by ICUs. Thus, antifungal stewardship programmes should mainly focus on these patients within the availability of diagnostic tests of each hospital. (C) 2018 International Society for Chemotherapy of Infection and Cancer. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Prevalence of Anosmia in 10.157 Pediatric COVID-19 Cases: Multicenter Study from Turkey.

Introduction: COVID-19-related anosmia is a remarkable and disease-specific finding. With this multicenter cohort study, we aimed to determine the prevalence of anosmia in pediatric cases with COVID-19 from Turkey and make an objective assessment with a smell awareness questionnaire. Material and Methods: This multicenter prospective cohort study was conducted with pediatric infection clinics in 37 centers in 19 different cities of Turkey between October 2020 and March 2021. The symptoms of 10.157 COVID-19 cases 10-18 years old were examined. Age, gender, other accompanying symptoms, and clinical severity of the disease of cases with anosmia and ageusia included in the study were recorded. The cases were interviewed for the smell awareness questionnaire at admission and one month after the illness. Results: Anosmia was present in 12.5% (1.266/10.157) of COVID-19 cases 10-18 years of age. The complete records of 1053 patients followed during the study period were analyzed. The most common symptoms accompanying symptoms with anosmia were ageusia in 885 (84%) cases, fatigue in 534 cases (50.7%), and cough in 466 cases (44.3%). Anosmia was recorded as the only symptom in 84 (8%) of the cases. One month later, it was determined that anosmia persisted in 88 (8.4%) cases. In the smell awareness questionnaire, the score at admission was higher than the score one month later (P < 0.001). Discussion: With this study, we have provided the examination of a large case series across Turkey. Anosmia and ageusia are specific symptoms seen in cases of COVID-19. With the detection of these symptoms, it should be aimed to isolate COVID-19 cases in the early period and reduce the spread of the infection. Such studies are important because the course of COVID-19 in children differs from adults and there is limited data on the prevalence of anosmia