Infants with congenital nephrotic syndrome have comparable outcomes to infants with other renal diseases

BackgroundChildren with congenital nephrotic syndrome (CNS) commonly develop end stage renal failure in infancy and require dialysis, but little is known about the complications and outcomes of dialysis in these children.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective case note review across members of the European Society for Pediatric Nephrology Dialysis Working Group to evaluate dialysis management, complications of dialysis, and outcomes in children with CNS.ResultsEighty children (50% male) with CNS were identified form 17 centers over a 6-year period. Chronic dialysis was started in 44 (55%) children at a median age of 8 (interquartile range 4-14) months. Of these, 17 (39%) were on dialysis by the age of 6months, 30 (68%) by 1year, and 40 (91%) by 2years. Peritoneal dialysis (PD) was the modality of choice in 93%, but 34% switched to hemodialysis (HD), largely due to catheter malfunction (n=5) or peritonitis (n=4). The peritonitis rate was 0.77 per patient-year. Weight and height SDS remained static after 6months on dialysis. In the overall cohort, at final follow-up, 29 children were transplanted, 18 were still on dialysis (15 PD, 3 HD), 19 were in pre-dialysis chronic kidney disease (CKD), and there were 14 deaths (8 on dialysis). Median time on chronic dialysis until transplantation was 9 (6-18) months, and the median age at transplantation was 22 (14-28) months.ConclusionsInfants with CNS on dialysis have a comparable mortality, peritonitis rate, growth, and time to transplantation as infants with other primary renal diseases reported in international registry data.Peer reviewe

Mutually-Antagonistic Interactions in Baseball Networks

We formulate the head-to-head matchups between Major League Baseball pitchers and batters from 1954 to 2008 as a bipartite network of mutually-antagonistic interactions. We consider both the full network and single-season networks, which exhibit interesting structural changes over time. We find interesting structure in the network and examine their sensitivity to baseball's rule changes. We then study a biased random walk on the matchup networks as a simple and transparent way to compare the performance of players who competed under different conditions and to include information about which particular players a given player has faced. We find that a player's position in the network does not correlate with his success in the random walker ranking but instead has a substantial effect on its sensitivity to changes in his own aggregate performance.Comment: A few clarifications added 14 pages, 2 tables, 6 figures. Submitte

Rituximab-associated hypogammaglobulinemia in children with idiopathic nephrotic syndrome: results of an ESPN survey.

BackgroundThere is paucity of information on rituximab-associated hypogammaglobulinemia (HGG) and its potential infectious consequences in children treated for idiopathic nephrotic syndrome (INS).MethodsA survey was distributed by the European Society Pediatric Nephrology to its members. It addressed the screening and management practices of pediatric nephrology units for recognizing and treating RTX-associated HGG and its morbidity and mortality. Eighty-four centers which had treated an overall 1328 INS children with RTX responded.ResultsThe majority of centers administered several courses of RTX and continued concomitant immunosuppressive therapy. Sixty-five percent of centers routinely screened children for HGG prior to RTX infusion, 59% during, and 52% following RTX treatment. Forty-seven percent had observed HGG prior to RTX administration, 61% during and 47% >9 months following treatment in 121, 210, and 128 subjects respectively. Thirty-three severe infections were reported among the cohort of 1328 RTX-treated subjects, of whom 3 children died. HGG had been recognized in 30/33 (80%) of them.ConclusionsHGG in steroid-dependent/frequently relapsing nephrotic syndrome (SDNS/FRNS) children is probably multifactorial and can be observed prior to RTX administration in children with SDNS/FRNS. Persistent HGG lasting >9 months from RTX infusion is not uncommon and may increase the risk of severe infections in this cohort. We advocate for the obligatory screening for HGG in children with SDNS/FRNS prior to, during, and following RTX treatment. Further research is necessary to identify risk factors for developing both HGG and severe infections before recommendations are made for its optimal management. A higher resolution version of the Graphical abstract is available as Supplementary information

In-play betting, sport broadcasts, and gambling severity: a survey study of Spanish sports bettors on the risks of gambling on sport while watching it

Fans watching live sport events, both mediated or in stadia, have witnessed an increase in sports betting products. Most of these products feature in-play betting, that is, the ability to bet on a game once it has started while watching it. In-play betting has raised many concerns among responsible gambling advocates due to its perceived relationship with problem gambling behaviour. This study explored the association between in-play betting and problem gambling. More specifically, the study examined how motives for consuming sport and how involved sports fans were in watching sport affected their gambling. Also, adjacent risk behaviours to in-play betting (such as consuming junk food and alcohol) during live sports betting were examined. Using a survey comprising 659 sports bettors from Spain, the study found that compared to participants not engaging in in-play betting, in-play bettors reported higher (i) problem gambling severity, (ii) sport watching involvement, (iii) consumption of sport to escape from everyday preoccupations, and (iv) consumption of junk food and/or alcohol while watching sport. These findings make the case that in-play betting regulators and providers should be cognizant of the interplay of sport-specific, media-related, and other risks, involved in the act of in-play betting while watching live sport

Score a goal for climate: Assessing the carbon footprint of travel patterns of the English Premier League clubs

Football is the most popular sport, globally and in the United Kingdom. However it generates a range of negative environmental impacts, such as climate change, due to an extensive amount of travel involved. The growing contribution of football clubs to the global carbon footprint has been recognised, but never consistently assessed. This study assesses the carbon footprint of the English Premier League (EPL)clubs, using the patterns of their domestic travel in the 2016/2017 season as a proxy for analysis. The study shows that, within the 2016/17 season, the EPL clubs produced circa 1134 tonnes of CO 2- eq. as a result of their travel, where transportation accounts for 61% of the carbon footprint. To reduce this carbon footprint, a careful review of the current corporate travel and procurement practices in the EPL clubs is necessary. This is in order to optimise the travel itineraries, prioritise more climate-benign modes of transport and contract budget accommodation providers with the ‘green’ credentials

Bahamas Bowl

WKU football team meets Central Michigan in the Bahamas Bowl.https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/wku_timeline/1371/thumbnail.jp

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