In-hospital mortality risk stratification in children aged under 5 years with pneumonia with or without pulse oximetry: A secondary analysis of the Pneumonia REsearch Partnership to Assess WHO REcommendations (PREPARE) dataset

OBJECTIVES

We determined the pulse oximetry benefit in pediatric pneumonia mortality risk stratification and chest-indrawing pneumonia in-hospital mortality risk factors.

METHODS

We report the characteristics and in-hospital pneumonia-related mortality of children aged 2-59 months who were included in the Pneumonia Research Partnership to Assess WHO Recommendations dataset. We developed multivariable logistic regression models of chest-indrawing pneumonia to identify mortality risk factors.

RESULTS

Among 285,839 children, 164,244 (57.5%) from hospital-based studies were included. Pneumonia case fatality risk (CFR) without pulse oximetry measurement was higher than with measurement (5.8%, 95% confidence interval [CI] 5.6-5.9% vs 2.1%, 95% CI 1.9-2.4%). One in five children with chest-indrawing pneumonia was hypoxemic (19.7%, 95% CI 19.0-20.4%), and the hypoxemic CFR was 10.3% (95% CI 9.1-11.5%). Other mortality risk factors were younger age (either 2-5 months [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 9.94, 95% CI 6.67-14.84] or 6-11 months [aOR 2.67, 95% CI 1.71-4.16]), moderate malnutrition (aOR 2.41, 95% CI 1.87-3.09), and female sex (aOR 1.82, 95% CI 1.43-2.32).

CONCLUSION

Children with a pulse oximetry measurement had a lower CFR. Many children hospitalized with chest-indrawing pneumonia were hypoxemic and one in 10 died. Young age and moderate malnutrition were risk factors for in-hospital chest-indrawing pneumonia-related mortality. Pulse oximetry should be integrated in pneumonia hospital care for children under 5 years.

Assembling a global database of child pneumonia studies to inform WHO pneumonia management algorithm: Methodology and applications

Background

The existing World Health Organization (WHO) pneumonia case management guidelines rely on clinical symptoms and signs for identifying, classifying, and treating pneumonia in children up to 5 years old. We aimed to collate an individual patient-level data set from large, high-quality pre-existing studies on pneumonia in children to identify a set of signs and symptoms with greater validity in the diagnosis, prognosis, and possible treatment of childhood pneumonia for the improvement of current pneumonia case management guidelines.

Methods

Using data from a published systematic review and expert knowledge, we identified studies meeting our eligibility criteria and invited investigators to share individual-level patient data. We collected data on demographic information, general medical history, and current illness episode, including history, clinical presentation, chest radiograph findings when available, treatment, and outcome. Data were gathered separately from hospital-based and community-based cases. We performed a narrative synthesis to describe the final data set.

Results

Forty-one separate data sets were included in the Pneumonia Research Partnership to Assess WHO Recommendations (PREPARE) database, 26 of which were hospital-based and 15 were community-based. The PREPARE database includes 285 839 children with pneumonia (244 323 in the hospital and 41 516 in the community), with detailed descriptions of clinical presentation, clinical progression, and outcome. Of 9185 pneumonia-related deaths, 6836 (74%) occurred in children <1 year of age and 1317 (14%) in children aged 1-2 years. Of the 285 839 episodes, 280 998 occurred in children 0-59 months old, of which 129 584 (46%) were 2-11 months of age and 152 730 (54%) were males.

Conclusions

This data set could identify an improved specific, sensitive set of criteria for diagnosing clinical pneumonia and help identify sick children in need of referral to a higher level of care or a change of therapy. Field studies could be designed based on insights from PREPARE analyses to validate a potential revised pneumonia algorithm. The PREPARE methodology can also act as a model for disease database assembly.

Derivation and validation of a novel risk assessment tool to identify children aged 2–59 months at risk of hospitalised pneumonia-related mortality in 20 countries

Introduction

Existing risk assessment tools to identify children at risk of hospitalised pneumonia-related mortality have shown suboptimal discriminatory value during external validation. Our objective was to derive and validate a novel risk assessment tool to identify children aged 2–59 months at risk of hospitalised pneumonia-related mortality across various settings.

Methods

We used primary, baseline, patient-level data from 11 studies, including children evaluated for pneumonia in 20 low-income and middle-income countries. Patients with complete data were included in a logistic regression model to assess the association of candidate variables with the outcome hospitalised pneumonia-related mortality. Adjusted log coefficients were calculated for each candidate variable and assigned weighted points to derive the Pneumonia Research Partnership to Assess WHO Recommendations (PREPARE) risk assessment tool. We used bootstrapped selection with 200 repetitions to internally validate the PREPARE risk assessment tool.

Results

A total of 27 388 children were included in the analysis (mean age 14.0 months, pneumonia-related case fatality ratio 3.1%). The PREPARE risk assessment tool included patient age, sex, weight-for-age z-score, body temperature, respiratory rate, unconsciousness or decreased level of consciousness, convulsions, cyanosis and hypoxaemia at baseline. The PREPARE risk assessment tool had good discriminatory value when internally validated (area under the curve 0.83, 95% CI 0.81 to 0.84).

Conclusions

The PREPARE risk assessment tool had good discriminatory ability for identifying children at risk of hospitalised pneumonia-related mortality in a large, geographically diverse dataset. After external validation, this tool may be implemented in various settings to identify children at risk of hospitalised pneumonia-related mortality.

External validation of the RISC, RISC-Malawi, and PERCH clinical prediction rules to identify risk of death in children hospitalized with pneumonia

BACKGROUND

Existing scores to identify children at risk of hospitalized pneumonia-related mortality lack broad external validation. Our objective was to externally validate three such risk scores.

METHODS

We applied the Respiratory Index of Severity in Children (RISC) for HIV-negative children, the RISC-Malawi, and the Pneumonia Etiology Research for Child Health (PERCH) scores to hospitalized children in the Pneumonia REsearch Partnerships to Assess WHO REcommendations (PREPARE) data set. The PREPARE data set includes pooled data from 41 studies on pediatric pneumonia from across the world. We calculated test characteristics and the area under the curve (AUC) for each of these clinical prediction rules.

RESULTS

The RISC score for HIV-negative children was applied to 3574 children 0-24 months and demonstrated poor discriminatory ability (AUC = 0.66, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.58-0.73) in the identification of children at risk of hospitalized pneumonia-related mortality. The RISC-Malawi score had fair discriminatory value (AUC = 0.75, 95% CI = 0.74-0.77) among 17 864 children 2-59 months. The PERCH score was applied to 732 children 1-59 months and also demonstrated poor discriminatory value (AUC = 0.55, 95% CI = 0.37-0.73).

CONCLUSIONS

In a large external application of the RISC, RISC-Malawi, and PERCH scores, a substantial number of children were misclassified for their risk of hospitalized pneumonia-related mortality. Although pneumonia risk scores have performed well among the cohorts in which they were derived, their performance diminished when externally applied. A generalizable risk assessment tool with higher sensitivity and specificity to identify children at risk of hospitalized pneumonia-related mortality may be needed. Such a generalizable risk assessment tool would need context-specific validation prior to implementation in that setting.

Cupriavidus pauculus bacteremia related to parenteral nutrition. Case series report

Cupriavidus pauculus is a Gram negative rod that is usually isolated in water and has been extraordinarily isolated in patients with vascular access and / or immunosuppression. In this work we present a series of cases of patients with positive blood cultures for cupríavidus pauculus, during a short period of time in our hospital center. The only characteristic related to all cases was the use of parenteral nutrition. It highlights the rareness of the microorganism and the susceptibility identified in the antibiogram, which may be useful for future cases.

Value of chest radiography in predicting treatment response in children aged 3-59 months with severe pneumonia

SETTING

International multicentric study at nine tertiary care centres.

OBJECTIVE

The World Health Organization (WHO) currently does not recommend chest radiographs (CXRs) for routine management of pneumonia. We evaluated the use of CXR for the prediction of treatment failure in children with severe pneumonia.

DESIGN

We used WHO vaccine trials radiographic assessment, clinical and nasopharyngeal microbiological data from 1121 3-59-month-old children recruited using the WHO definition of severe pneumonia in the Amoxicillin Penicillin Pneumonia International Study (APPIS). Using Poisson regression, we estimated the relative risk of developing clinical treatment failure and predictive preventive benefit of the CXR and examined the concordance of the CXR findings with the nasopharyngeal microbiological data.

RESULTS

A CXR with 'significant pathology' (defined by the WHO algorithm as end-point consolidation, pleural fluid and other infiltrates) was associated with a high risk of treatment failure, especially in children who received penicillin as compared to oral amoxicillin. Significant pathology was also associated with nasopharyngeal isolation of penicillin-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae. Children with a normal CXR had a reduced risk of clinical treatment failure.

CONCLUSIONS

CXR with significant pathology independently and additively predicts clinical treatment failure. If CXR and the WHO tool are available, they can be used in the management of severe pneumonia.

Chloramphenicol versus ampicillin plus gentamicin for community acquired very severe pneumonia among children aged 2-59 months in low resource settings: multicentre randomised controlled trial (SPEAR study)

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate whether five days' treatment with injectable ampicillin plus gentamicin compared with chloramphenicol reduces treatment failure in children aged 2-59 months with community acquired very severe pneumonia in low resource settings.

DESIGN

Open label randomised controlled trial.

SETTING

Inpatient wards within tertiary care hospitals in Bangladesh, Ecuador, India, Mexico, Pakistan, Yemen, and Zambia.

PARTICIPANTS

Children aged 2-59 months with WHO defined very severe pneumonia.

INTERVENTION

Chloramphenicol versus a combination of ampicillin plus gentamicin.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Primary outcome measure was treatment failure at five days. Secondary outcomes were treatment failure defined similarly among all participants evaluated at 48 hours and at 10 and 21 days.

RESULTS

More children failed treatment with chloramphenicol at day 5 (16% v 11%; relative risk 1.43, 95% confidence interval 1.03 to 1.97) and also by days 10 and 21. Overall, 112 bacterial isolates were obtained from blood and lung aspirates in 110 children (11.5%), with the most common organisms being Staphylococcus aureus (n=47) and Streptococcus pneumoniae (n=22). In subgroup analysis, bacteraemia with any organism increased the risk of treatment failure at 21 days in the chloramphenicol group (2.09, 1.41 to 3.10) but not in the ampicillin plus gentamicin group (1.12, 0.59 to 2.13). Similarly, isolation of S pneumoniae increased the risk of treatment failure at day 21 (4.06, 2.73 to 6.03) and death (5.80, 2.62 to 12.85) in the chloramphenicol group but not in the ampicillin plus gentamicin group. No difference was found in treatment failure for children with S aureus bacteraemia in the two groups, but the power to detect a difference in this subgroup analysis was low. Independent predictors of treatment failure by multivariate analysis were hypoxaemia (oxygen saturation <90%), receiving chloramphenicol, being female, and poor immunisation status.

CONCLUSION

Injectable ampicillin plus gentamicin is superior to injectable chloramphenicol for the treatment of community acquired very severe pneumonia in children aged 2-59 months in low resource settings.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN39543942.

Brief hospitalization and pulse oximetry for predicting amoxicillin treatment failure in children with severe pneumonia

OBJECTIVE

In settings with limited assessment tools, we sought to determine whether early clinical signs and symptoms and blood oxygen saturation would predict amoxicillin treatment failure in children with severe pneumonia (as defined by the World Health Organization).

METHODS

Data were from a previously reported, multinational trial of orally administered amoxicillin versus injectable penicillin for the treatment of World Health Organization-defined severe pneumonia in children 3 to 59 months of age. We assessed all 857 participants assigned randomly to the experimental amoxicillin arm. Six multivariate logistic regression models were created and evaluated for their ability to predict failure after 48 hours of therapy. Regression models included vital signs, symptoms, and laboratory data collected at baseline and after 12 or 24 hours of observation. Oxygen saturation data were included in 3 models.

RESULTS

Clinical treatment failure occurred for 18% of children. Younger age, increased initial respiratory rate, and baseline hypoxia predicted treatment failure in all models. Data available after 24 hours improved the ability to predict failure compared with data available at baseline or 12 hours. The inclusion of oximetry data improved the predictive ability at baseline, 12 hours, and 24 hours. The ability to predict failure after 12 hours of observation with oximetry data was similar to the predictive ability after 24 hours without pulse oximetry data.

CONCLUSIONS

Assessment of clinical parameters at presentation and after 24 hours improved the ability to predict clinical failure of oral amoxicillin therapy, compared with assessment at presentation alone or at presentation and after only 12 hours, for children with World Health Organization-defined severe pneumonia.

Safety and efficacy of a premixed, rice-based oral rehydration solution

The authors compared the safety and efficacy of a ready-to-use, premixed, rice-based oral rehydration solution (R-ORS) with a glucose-based oral rehydration solution (G-ORS), each containing 75 mmol/L sodium, in Mexican children with acute diarrhea for less than 5 days.

METHODS

One hundred eighty-nine boys 3 to 24 months old admitted to the hospital with acute diarrhea and signs of dehydration were randomly assigned to receive either G-ORS or R-ORS. Intake and output were measured every 3 hours.

RESULTS

In the group treated with R-ORS, significantly fewer patients required supplemental intravenous fluids during the rehydration phase compared to the G-ORS group (1% v 8.7%; P < 0.01). Mean stool output, percent weight gain, ORS intake, urine output, and number of patients who vomited during rehydration were similar in the two groups. The mean total stool output after the first 24 hours of maintenance phase was significantly lower in the R-ORS group than in the G-ORS group.

CONCLUSIONS

The authors found rice-based ORS to be safe, and its use reduced the rate of intravenous fluid therapy in comparison with the use of a glucose-based ORS.

[Nutritional impact of whole milk supplemented with vitamins and minerals in children]]

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the nutritional impact of the ingestion of a fortified whole milk in children.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Prospective, longitudinal assay in 227 children aged 8-60 months.

INTERVENTION

Daily consumption of 500 ml of fortified milk during 90 days. We registered milk acceptance and assessed weight, height; hemoglobin, serum iron, vitamin B12, and folic acid, at the beginning and the end of the study. Statistical evaluation were done with central and dispersion indices in the dimensional variables, using Student's t test and chi 2 test for compare nominal variables at initial and the end of the study.

RESULTS

At admission, 45 children were malnourished and 36 were anemic. At the end of the supplementation period there was a reduction to 35 malnourished (p < 0.21) and 18 anemic (p < 0.01). Anthropometric weight/height score in Z at the beginning and end of the study (x +/- S.D) were -0.35 +/- 0.88 vs -0.14 +/- 9 (p < 0.01); Hb g/dl: 11 +/- 1.3 vs 11.9 +/- 1.9 (p < 0.001), Iron mg/dl: 108 +/- 44 vs 115 +/- 31 (p = 0.06) and vitamin B12 pg/ml: 649 +/- 494 to 1053 +/- 854 (p < 0.001). The milk was well tolerated and widely accepted.

CONCLUSIONS

The consumption of a fortified whole milk during 90 days improved significantly the nutritional status of the children, the weight for height Z score, the plasma level of vitamin B12 and Hb, and decreased the number of anemic and malnourished children.

Are oxygen indices effective for predicting pathological intrapulmonary shunt in mechanically ventilated children?

BACKGROUND

This study was undertaken to evaluate whether oxygen indices accurately predict pathological intrapulmonary shunt (Qsp/Qt), and to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of the FiO2-required formula to obtain a desired arterial oxygen tension (PaO2) in mechanically ventilated children.

METHODS

A prospective, hospital-based, comparative study was conducted on 50 mechanically ventilated children at the Intensive Care Units of the National Institute of Pediatrics (INP) in Mexico City. Blood gas data were prospectively collected from 50 critically ill, mechanically ventilated children, 50 taken before and 40 after FiO2 change. Assessment of Qsp/Qt, P(A-a)O2, PaO2/FiO2, PaO2/PAO2, and P(A-a)O2/PaO2 was carried out before and after FiO2 change.

RESULTS

In first blood gas data, 31 patients were hypoxemic (PaO2 < 90 Torr), 10 were normal, and 9 were hyperoxemic (PaO2 > 100 Torr). Forty patients required FiO2 modifications that were carried out according to Maxwell's formula. Five children showed persistent oxygen disturbance after FiO2 changes. P(A-a)O2, PaO2/FiO2, PaO2/PAO2, and P(A-a)O2/PaO2 had sensitivities of 0.66, 0.71, 0.98, and 0.93, respectively, and specificities of 0.79, 0.91, 0.29, and 0.64, respectively, to detect pathological Qsp/Qt. All oxygen indices changed significantly after FiO2 modifications compared from initials; Qsp/Qt also showed significant change after FiO2 change. Pearson product-moment showed lineal correlation between each index, and Qsp/Qt demonstrated their significant correlation (p < 0.01). Correlation of Qsp/Qt and PaO2/FiO2 and PaO2/PAO2 was significantly higher in younger children (< 13 years) p < 0.05. The FiO2-required formula to obtain a desired PaO2 had a sensitivity of 0.93 and a specificity of 0.75.

CONCLUSIONS

The oxygen indices showed sufficient efficacy to detect pathological intrapulmonary shunt, and to have a statistically significant lineal correlation that permits its use during the clinical evaluation of oxygen transport data in most mechanically ventilated children, which is consistent with other reports on adult populations. However, one limitation for its use in clinical assessment, as reported in previous studies, would be that all indices in the present study are FiO2-dependent; therefore, when the FiO2 varies, the use is misleading. The FiO2-required formula is efficient for defining the appropriated FiO2 for the obtaining of the desired PaO2, but will always be merely a guide that should be confirmed through blood gas analysis.

Safety and efficacy of a rice-based oral rehydration salt solution in the treatment of diarrhea in infants less than 6 months of age

The safety and efficacy of a rice-based oral rehydration salt (ORS) solution for the treatment of acute diarrhea in infants < 6 months of age was compared to those of a standard glucose-based ORS solution. A total of 97 infants aged 1-6 months who had a history of acute diarrhea for 120 h or less and showed signs of mild to moderate dehydration and no complications was recruited. Subjects were assigned to two treatment groups and received either standard glucose-based ORS solution or rice-based ORS solution until cessation of diarrhea. There was no significant difference between the two treatment groups with regard to the main outcome variables, including total stool output (84 [95% confidence interval (CI), 56-126] vs. 106 (95% CI, 76-148) g/kg], total ORS solution intake [171 (95% CI, 149-197) vs. 187 (95% CI, 161-218) ml/kg], or duration of diarrhea (35 +/- 31 vs 38 +/- 32 h). In addition, the fact that there was no difference between treatment groups in the presence of reducing substances in the stools suggests that rice was digested and absorbed by these infants. The results of our study support the conclusion that for infants < 6 months of age, rice-based ORS solution is safe and as efficacious as standard glucose-based ORS solution in the treatment of acute diarrhea.

[Status epilepticus in children. Study of 70 cases]

We presented the experience at the Emergency Unit of the National Institute of Pediatrics with children with Status Epilepticus (SE). This series studied 70 patients, the greatest frequency was seen among infants (55%), followed by preschool children (17%). The most frequent type of SE was generalized tonic clonic (54%) also being the most critical. The simple partial status or epilepsia partialis continua was found to be another frequent variety. In newborns babies the most common type of SE was generalized tonic. Sixty percent originated as acute process, their main causes were central nervous infections, ischemic-hypoxic encephalopathy, intracranial hemorrhages and intoxications. The remaining 40% were due to chronic processes, the most important was secondary epilepsy. Among these children the main cause was the irregular use of antiepileptic drugs. Other factors were intercurrent infections with fever, head trauma and hyponatremia. Only 12.8% of the cases were idiopathic. Fifteen percent of the SE were successfully treated with diazepam; 44% with phenytoin plus phenobarbital, in 34.2% we used generalized anesthesia with thiopental. In 33% of the acute cases os SE there were sequelae, there were nine deaths (12.8%) all of them with serious illness of the central nervous system.