Lymphocyte Subsets in Mild COVID-19 Pediatric Patients

Objective: The reasons for a high prevalence of asymptomatic or mild coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and rare severe disease in children have been explained by non-immune and immune mechanisms. This study aimed to evaluate the immune system’s response to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 by investigating lymphocyte subsets.

Materials and Methods: This study included 33 coronavirus disease positive children, of whom 12 had mild disease and 21 had an asymptomatic infection as the patient group and 26 age- and gender-matched healthy children as the control group. The demographic information, symptoms, physical examination findings, complete blood count, C-reactive protein (CRP), procalcitonin, and lymphocyte subsets were recorded in all subjects.

Results: Leukocyte, lymphocyte, monocyte count, and hemoglobin levels of our pediatric coronavirus disease patients were similar to the control group. Neutrophil was lower in the coronavirus disease cases compared to the control group. CRP and procalcitonin levels of asymptomatic cases were similar to the control group. B cell count, CD8+ T cell count, and CD4/CD8 ratio (dividing the CD4 cell count by the CD8 cell count) ratio were similar in the patient and control groups. Natural killer, T cell, and CD4+ T cell counts were significantly higher in the whole patient group compared to the control group.

Conclusion: One reason for mild severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection in children may be an increase in some lymphocyte subsets such as natural killer cells, T cell, and CD4+ T cell. Understanding the answer to the question of why children develop more protective immunity to the virus could be an essential step for developing new treatments.

Tubular calcium, magnesium, and phosphate excretion during therapeutic hypothermia for neonatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy: A prospective study

OBJECTIVES

Hypocalcemia, hypomagnesemia, and hyperphosphatemia are common electrolyte disturbances in perinatal asphyxia (PA). Different reasons have been proposed for these electrolyte disturbances. This study investigated the effect of the urinary excretion of calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), and phosphorus (P) on the serum levels of these substances in babies who were treated using therapeutic hypothermia for hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) caused by PA. This study sheds light on the pathophysiology that may cause changes in the serum values of these electrolytes.

METHODS

This study included 21 healthy newborns (control group) and 38 patients (HIE group) who had undergone therapeutic hypothermia due to HIE. Only infants with a gestational age of 36 weeks and above and a birth weight of 2000 g and above were evaluated. The urine and serum Ca, Mg, P, and creatinine levels of all infants were evaluated at 24, 48, and 72 h.

RESULTS

The lower serum Ca value and the higher serum P value of the HIE group were found to be statistically significant compared to the control group (p<0.05). There was no significant difference in serum Mg values between the groups. However, hypomagnesemia was detected in five patients from the HIE group. The urine excretion of FeCa and FeMg at 24 h, and FeP excretion at 48 and 72 h were found to be significantly higher in the HIE group compared to the control group.

CONCLUSIONS

This study determined that the urinary excretion of Ca, Mg, and P has an effect on the serum Ca, Mg, and P levels of infants with HIE.

Anti-MOG Antibody Seropositive Neuromyelitis Optica: A Rare Pediatric Case

Neuromyelitis Optica spectrum disorder (NMO-SD) is a rare demyelinating disease detected in pediatric patients affecting the primary optic nerve and spinal cord. Clinical findings might overlap with other demyelinating diseases and compare to particularly multiple sclerosis the treatment regimens significantly differ. Therefore, to establish an immediate and definite diagnosis of NMO-SD is crucial. In the majority of patients, the aquaporin-4 antibody is detected in the serum as one of the supporting diagnostic criteria. The antibody against myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) is recently reported to be associated with serum aquaporin-4 antibody seronegative NMO-SD. Although not included in the diagnostic criteria, we believe that anti-MOG antibody may facilitate the diagnosis of NMO-SD. We herein report a pediatric case of NMO-SD with the anti-MOG antibody seropositivity.