Clinical trial: Oral ondansetron for reducing vomiting secondary to acute gastroenteritis in children - A double-blind randomized study

PubMedID: 19758398Background: Vomiting as a consequence of gastroenteritis frequently occurs in children. It is still debatable whether vomiting should be treated with antiemetic drugs. Aim To investigate potential beneficial effects of ondansetron in treating vomiting during acute gastroenteritis. Methods A randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled trial was performed in our emergency departments. Children, aged 5 months to 8 years, were randomized to receive either ondansetron 0.2 mg/kg or placebo at 8h intervals. The primary outcome measure was the frequency of emesis during an 8-h-period after enrolment. Results A hundred and nine patients were enrolled; 54 received placebo and 55 received ondansetron. As compared with the children who received placebo, children who received ondansetron were less likely to vomit both during the first 8-h follow-up in the emergency department [relative risk (RR): 0.33, 95% CI: 0.19-0.56, NNT: 2, 95% CI: 1.6-3.5], and during the next 24-h follow-up (RR: 0.15, 95% CI: 0.07-0.33, NNT: 2, 95% CI: 1.3-2.1). Conclusion Ondansetron may be an effective and efficient treatment that reduces the incidence of vomiting from gastroenteritis during both the first 8 h and the next 24 h, and is probably a useful adjunct to oral rehydration. © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd

Screening tools for bacteraemia in a selected population of febrile children

PubMedID: 18392297Introduction: This is a prospective, observational study. The aims of the study were to determine the rate of bacteraemia in febrile children in Turkey, and to evaluate the usefulness of white blood cell (WBC) count and manual differential counts of peripheral blood smears and a RISK score in predicting bacteraemia among these children. Materials and Methods: A total of 377 febrile children aged 3 to 36 months were included in the study. Complete blood cell (CBC) count, manual differential counts and blood cultures were performed in all patients. The main outcome measures used to evaluate the usefulness of the RISK score were sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), odds ratio (OR), posterior probability, areas under receiver operator characteristic curves (AUC) and miss-to-diagnosis ratio (MDR). Results: Among the patients, 4.4% had bacteraemia and the predominant pathogen was Streptococcus pneumoniae. The Yale Observation Scale scores, percentages of neutrophil and bands, band-neutrophil ratio, absolute neutrophil count and absolute band count were found to be statistically significant predictors of bacteraemia. When the RISK score was 2 or higher, sensitivity was 93.8%, false positive ratio 35.8%, PPV 10.6%, NPV 99.5%, OR 26.2 (95% CI, 3.4 to 200.8), MDR 0.066 and posterior probability value 10%. Conclusions: We conclude that determination of the RISK score will significantly decrease unnecessary blood culture sampling, antibiotherapy and hospitalisation among febrile patients aged 3 to 36 months without an identifiable focus of infection

Neuroinfluenza: evaluation of seasonal influenza associated severe neurological complications in children (a multicenter study)

PubMedID: 28762041Purpose: Although influenza primarily affects the respiratory system, in some cases, it can cause severe neurological complications. Younger children are especially at risk. Pediatric literature is limited on the diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of influenza-related neurological complications. The aim of the study was to evaluate children who suffered severe neurological manifestation as a result of seasonal influenza infection. Methods: The medical records of 14 patients from six hospitals in different regions of the country were evaluated. All of the children had a severe neurological manifestations related to laboratory-confirmed influenza infection. Results: Median age of the patients was 59 months (6 months—15.5 years) and nine (64.3%) were male. Only 4 (28.6%) of the 14 patients had a comorbid disease. Two patients were admitted to hospital with influenza-related late complications, and the remainder had acute complication. The most frequent complaints at admission were fever, altered mental status, vomiting, and seizure, respectively. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis was performed in 11 cases, and pleocytosis was found in only two cases. Neuroradiological imaging was performed in 13 patients. The most frequent affected regions of nervous system were as follows: cerebellum, brainstem, thalamus, basal ganglions, periventricular white matter, and spinal cords. Nine (64.3%) patients suffered epileptic seizures. Two patients had focal seizure, and the rest had generalized seizures. Two patients developed status epilepticus. Most frequent diagnoses of patients were encephalopathy (n = 4), encephalitis (n = 3), and meningitis (n = 3), respectively. The rate of recovery without sequelae from was found to be 50%. At discharge, three (21.4%) patients had mild symptoms, another three (21.4%) had severe neurological sequelae. One (7.1%) patient died. The clinical findings were more severe and outcome was worse in patients 5 years old and in patients with comorbid disease than previously healthy group. Conclusion: Seasonal influenza infection may cause severe neurological complications, especially in children. Healthy children are also at risk such as patients with comorbid conditions. All children who are admitted with neurological findings, especially during the influenza season, should be evaluated for influenza-related neurological complications even if their respiratory complaints are mild or nonexistent. © 2017, Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany

The importance of bedside ultrasonography in confirming the location of endotracheal tube

Objective. Endotracheal intubation may be associated with lethal complications when not applied in appropriate manner. In this study, we aimed to examine the e!ciency of transcricoid and pulmonary ultrasonography in confirming the position of the tube in comparison with classical methods. Methods. This study was carried out between 2016 and 2017 in Turkey and was registered in Clinical Trials under number NCT03081221. The location of the tube was confirmed using methods such as monitoring the vocal cords during direct laryngoscopy, condensation on endotracheal tube during respiration, epigastric-pulmonary auscultation, radiography and capnometry. After that, the transcricoid and pulmonary ultrasonography were implemented by the blinded pediatric emergency care specialist. Results. 64 cases who needed advanced airway requirements were involved in this study. The double-line appearance could not be obtained from one patient only when using transcricoid ultrasonography, but the bilateral pleural shift movement was observed among all the cases by using pulmonary ultrasonography (sensitive: 98%-100%). Conclusion. The determination of endoesophageal, endotracheal and endobronchial intubations can be easily made by using transcricoid and pulmonary ultrasonography. The use of ultrasonography may significantly contribute to critical airway management as fast, accurate and on time. © 2019, Pharmamed Mado Ltd. All rights reserved

Determination of cerebral edema with serial measurement of optic nerve sheath diameter during treatment in children with diabetic ketoacidosis: A longitudinal study

PubMedID: 31299007Cerebral edema is a fatal complication that can occur in children with diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). Its clinical signs are generally not explicit, and subclinical cerebral edema can occur. This study is one of the few longitudinal studies conducted to identify cerebral edema in patients with DKA by measuring the optic nerve sheath diameter (ONSD). The aim of this study was to investigate cerebral edema in children with DKA with serial measurement of ONSD, which is an early and reliable indicator of cerebral edema, and to monitor changes in ONSD during therapy. The study was conducted by measuring ONSD ultrasonographically at baseline and during the course of therapy in patients with DKA. All participants were diagnosed and received therapy at our unit between May 2016 and June 2017. The study was registered with the Clinical Trials database, with a study number of NCT02937441. Measurements were obtained while the patients were in the supine position with their eyes closed, and axial transbulbar images of both eyes were obtained with a 6-15-MHz linear probe. The ONSD values of children with DKA changed during the treatment, reaching the highest values at 12-16 h of therapy, and the greatest ONSD was observed in children who had moderate and severe DKA. During treatment of children with DKA, it is possible to predict cerebral edema by measuring ONSD, and this may contribute to clinical management, especially fluid treatment. © 2019 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

Hashimoto's encephalopathy: Four cases and review of literature

PubMedID: 23967879Hashimoto's encephalopathy is a rare clinically heterogenous condition consisting of encephalopathy, seizures and variable neurological and psychiatric manifestations, accompanied by high titres of serum antithyroid antibodies. We described the clinical and laboratory findings of four children (aged 8-17 years) with Hashimoto's encephalopathy. The clinical features of three patients at presentation included refractory epilepsy, and confusion, and one patient presented with behavioral and cognitive changes. During their presentation, two of them were in euthyroid, and the others were in hypothyroid status. All patients manifested increased antithyroid antibodies. Two patients improved with steroid treatment. The others responded to plasmapheresis instead of corticosteroid treatment. Physicians' awareness of this complication is of great importance because most patients respond dramatically to the treatment. Copyright © 2014 Informa Healthcare USA, Inc

Pediatric Lyme Neuroborreliosis: Different clinical presentations of the same agent; Single center experience

PubMedID: 27179572METHODS: The study was conducted at tertiary training and research hospital. From January 2014 to September 2015, a total of 75 patients diagnosed with encephalitis, ataxia, Guillain Barre Syndrome (GBS), facial paralysis, acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM), pseudotumorcerebri were evaluated for inclusion to the study. Among these patients whom investigations of B. burgdorferi antibody IgM and/or IgG ELISA and Western Blot (WB) were detected to be positive, were assessed. Epidemiologic data, tick bite histories, duration of symptoms, clinical findings, radiologic findings, treatment durations and prognosis were investigated.RESULTS: Totally 7 patients had been treated with the diagnosis of Lyme neuroborreliosis. The mean age was 9.14±4.91 years; duration of symptoms before admission was 8.0±4.50 days; and the duration of antibiotic use was 2.85±0.89 weeks. All patients had received ceftriaxone and intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG); 3 patients had received plasmapheresis (42.9%) and one patient had received pulse corticosteroid therapy. While the patient with the diagnosis of encephalomyeloneuritis and atypical GBS had partially improved, the other patients were completely cured.CONCLUSION: In this article, we report pediatric LNB patients, B. burgdorferi should also be considered in patients with atypical or severe neurologic involvement or a history of tick bite; it is known that the prognosis is good with appropriate and early treatment.OBJECTIVES: Lyme disease is a vector-associated infectious disease, caused by the agent, spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi. Neurologic findings are observed in approximately 12% of the cases and termed Lyme neuroborreliosis (LNB). Lyme neuroborreliosis may manifest with different clinical neurologic manifestations