0915 Sleep Patterns and the Effect of Late Bedtime on School-Age Children and Adolescents: Preliminary Results

17 USC 105 interim-entered record; under review.The article of record as published may be found at https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/zsaa056.911Introduction: School-age children (6-13yrs) and teenagers (14-17yrs) should receive 9-11hrs and 8-10hrs of sleep/day, respectively. Several studies have shown, however, that these age groups are chronically sleep deprived. Our study assessed the sleep patterns of a sample of children and teenagers in Athens, Greece. The study is part of a larger project investigating the association between orthodontic treatment and sleep disturbances. Methods: Participants (N=27; 69% females; 21 school-age children 9-13yrs, 6 teenagers 14-17yrs) were under treatment in the Orthodontic Clinic of the National and Kapodistrian University. Sleep was assessed with actigraphy/logs for 59±19 days. Results: Participants slept on average 7.36±0.42hrs/day. Nighttime sleep was on average 7.23±0.43hrs (percentage sleep: 87.3%±3.38%). Four (14.8%) participants napped at least once/week. Compared to the lowest sleep duration recommended for their age group, participants showed a chronic sleep deficit of 1.42±0.52hrs/day (range: 0.32-2.15hrs). The younger age group had an average sleep deficit of ~1.6hrs compared to ~0.8hrs for the teenagers (p=0.006). During the school year, daily sleep duration increased by ~0.73hrs on weekends (7.78±0.67hrs) compared to school nights (7.05±0.48hrs; p<0.001). On average, school-age participants slept from 23:13 (±31min) until 7:19 (±22min) on school nights and from 23:23 (±2:72hrs) until 8:49 (±39min) on weekends. Teenagers slept from 00:34 (±36min) until 7:40 (±14min) on school nights and from 01:34 (±41min) until 10:34 (±48min) on weekends. Conclusion: Our findings verify earlier survey results showing that restricted sleep is a problem for children and adolescents in Greece. To our surprise, both age groups go to bed quite late. The impact of late bedtime on sleep duration, however, is larger in the younger group due to their larger sleep needs. In contrast to earlier research in rural areas, napping was not common in our urban sample, probably due to extracurricular activities and studying at home

Assessment of airflow limitation, airway inflammation, and symptoms during virus-induced wheezing episodes in 4- to 6-year-old children

Background: It is disputed whether recurrent episodes of wheeze in preschool-aged children comprise a distinct asthma phenotype. Objective: We sought to prospectively assess airflow limitation and airway inflammation in children 4 to 6 years old with episodic virus-induced wheeze. Methods: Ninety-three children 4 to 6 years old with a history of mild, virus-induced episodes of wheeze who were able to perform acceptable fraction of exhaled nitric oxide (Feno) maneuvers and spirometry (with forced expiratory time ≥0.5 seconds) were followed prospectively. Lung function and Feno values were measured every 6 weeks (baseline) within the first 48 hours of an acute wheezing episode (day 0) and 10 and 30 days later. Symptom scores and peak flow measurement were recorded daily. Results: Forty-three children experienced a wheezing episode. At day 0, Feno values were significantly increased, whereas forced expiratory volume at 0.5 seconds (FEV0.5) significantly decreased compared with baseline (16 ppb [interquartile range {IQR}, 13-20 ppb] vs 9 ppb IQR, 7-11 ppb] and 0.84 L [IQR, 0.75-0.99 L] vs 0.99 L [IQR, 0.9-1.07 L], respectively; both P &amp;lt; .001). Airflow limitation at day 0 was reversible after bronchodilation. FEV0.5 and Feno values were significantly associated with each other and with lower and upper respiratory tract symptoms when assessed longitudinally but not cross-sectionally at all time points independently of atopy. Feno and FEV0.5 values returned to baseline levels within 10 days. Conclusions: Mild episodes of wheeze in preschoolers are characterized by enhanced airway inflammation, reversible airflow limitation, and asthma-related symptoms. Feno values increase significantly during the first 48 hours and return to personal baseline within 10 days from the initiation of the episode. Longitudinal follow-up suggests that symptoms, inflammation, and lung function correlate well in this phenotype of asthma. © 2012 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma &amp;amp; Immunology

Performance of rapid influenza testing in hospitalized children

International audienceInfluenza infection is associated with high hospitalization rates among young children. Rapid diagnosis of influenza infection is particularly useful in order to prevent nosocomial infection and allows for the timely initiation of antiviral treatment. We evaluated the performance of a rapid influenza test in hospitalized children during the influenza season. All children (aged 6 months to 14 years) hospitalized with fever and/or respiratory symptoms, admitted during the 2005 influenza season, participated in the study. A multiplex reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), able to identify IFV-A H1N1, H3N2, and IFV-B subtypes, was performed on nasopharyngeal aspirates. The nasal swab was tested with a lateral-flow immunoassay (QuickVue Influenza Test). The performance of the rapid test was compared with the results of PCR. Influenza infection was diagnosed by PCR in 41/217 (19%) patients. Infection with influenza A virus (H3N2) was diagnosed in all cases. The performance of the QuickVue Influenza Test was estimated as follows: sensitivity 67.5%, specificity 96%, positive predictive value 79%, and negative predictive value 93%. The sensitivity of the test was higher in infants aged 6-12 months, in those with short duration of symptoms, and in the peak phase of the epidemic. The QuickVue Influenza Test is useful and reasonably accurate to detect influenza infection in hospitalized children during the influenza season. Infection with influenza virus is unlikely if the test is negative. A positive result suggests that infection is probable if influenza virus circulates in the community

Genetic diversity of the coat protein of Olive Mild Mosaic Virus (OMMV) and Tobacco Necrosis Virus D (TNV-D) isolates and its structural implications

The genetic variability among 13 isolates of Olive mild mosaic virus (OMMV) and of 11 isolates of Tobacco necrosis virus D (TNV-D) recovered from Olea europaea L. samples from various sites in Portugal, was assessed through the analysis of the coat protein (CP) gene sequences. This gene was amplified through reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RTPCR), cloned, and 5 clone sequences of each virus isolate, were analysed and compared, including sequences from OMMV and TNV-D isolates originally recovered from different hosts and countries and available in the GenBank, totalling 131 sequences. The encoded CP sequences consisted of 269 amino acids (aa) in OMMV and 268 in TNV-D. Comparison of the CP genomic and amino acid sequences of the isolates showed a very low variability among OMMV isolates, 0.005 and 0.007, respectively, as well as among TNV-D isolates, 0.006 and 0.008. The maximum nucleotide distances of OMMV and TNV-D sequences within isolates were also low, 0.013 and 0.031, respectively, and close to that found between isolates, 0.018 and 0.034, respectively. In some cases, less variability was found in clone sequences between isolates than in clone sequences within isolates, as also shown through phylogenetic analysis. CP aa sequence identities among OMMV and TNV-D isolates ranged from 84.3% to 85.8%. Comparison between the CP genomic sequences of the two viruses, showed a relatively low variability, 0.199, and a maximum nucleotide distance between isolates of 0.411. Analysis of comparative models of OMMV and TNV-D CPs, showed that naturally occurring substitutions in their respective sequences do not seem to cause significant alterations in the virion structure. This is consistent with a high selective pressure to preserve the structure of viral capsid proteins