Articles

Management of pediatric post-infectious neurological syndromes

Post-Infectious Neurological Syndromes (PINS) are heterogeneous neurological disorders with post or para-infectious onset. PINS diagnosis is complex, mainly related to the absence of any recognized guidelines ...

Authors: Elena Bozzola, Giulia Spina, Massimiliano Valeriani, Laura Papetti, Fabiana Ursitti, Rino Agostiniani, Cristina Mascolo, Margherita Ruggiero, Chiara Di Camillo, Anna Quondamcarlo, Luigi Matera, Davide Vecchio, Luigi Memo and Alberto Villani

Revised recommendations of the Italian Society of Pediatrics about the general management of Kawasaki disease

Aim of these revised recommendations for the general management of Kawasaki disease is to encourage its prompter recognition and warrant the most appropriate therapy, based on ascertained scientific data, rais...

Authors: Alessandra Marchesi, Donato Rigante, Rolando Cimaz, Angelo Ravelli, Isabella Tarissi de Jacobis, Alessandro Rimini, Fabio Cardinale, Marco Cattalini, Andrea De Zorzi, Rosa Maria Dellepiane, Patrizia Salice, Aurelio Secinaro, Andrea Taddio, Paolo Palma, Maya El Hachem, Elisabetta Cortis…

DYSMORPHIC features and adult short stature: possible clinical markers of KBG syndrome

Growth monitoring is an essential part of primary health care in children and short stature is frequently regarded as a relatively early sign of poor health. The association of short stature and dysmorphic fea...

Authors: Davide Mattei, Paolo Cavarzere, Rossella Gaudino, Franco Antoniazzi and Giorgio Piacentini

High-school students and self-injurious thoughts and behaviours: clues of emotion dysregulation

Suicide attempts and self-harm in adolescence are a major public health concern: they are among the main causes of disability-adjusted life-years worldwide, with severe long-term health consequences in terms o...

Authors: Caterina Zanus, Sara Battistutta, Renata Aliverti, Lorenzo Monasta, Marcella Montico, Luca Ronfani and Marco Carrozzi

Aromatic L-amino Acid Decarboxylase (AADC) deficiency: results from an Italian modified Delphi consensus

Aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC) deficiency is a rare and underdiagnosed neurometabolic disorder resulting in a complex neurological and non-neurological phenotype, posing diagnostic challenges resul...

Authors: Carlo Fusco, Vincenzo Leuzzi, Pasquale Striano, Roberta Battini, Alberto Burlina and Carlotta Spagnoli

COVID-19 lockdown beneficial effects on lung function in a cohort of cystic fibrosis patients

Authors: Alessia Giuseppina Servidio, Giulia Capata, Laura Levantino, Guglielmo Riccio, Sarah Contorno, Egidio Barbi and Massimo Maschio

Utility of a pediatric observation unit for the management of children admitted to the emergency department

Observation Units (OU), as part of emergency department (ED), are areas reserved for short-term treatment or observation of patients with selected diagnoses to determine the need for hospitalization or home re...

Authors: Antonio Gatto, Serena Rivetti, Lavinia Capossela, Davide Pata, Marcello Covino and Antonio Chiaretti

The risks of physicians’ conformism: reflections from the opioid overflow

Opioid-related mortality in adolescents is spreading in the US, with prescription opioids playing a crucial role in the development of addiction. We traced back to the process leading to the so called “opioid ...

Authors: Luisa Cortellazzo Wiel, Giorgio Cozzi and Egidio Barbi

Morbidity associated with patent ductus arteriosus in preterm newborns: a retrospective case-control study

Association between persistency of a patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) and morbidity in preterm newborns is still controversial. We aimed to investigate the relation between PDA and morbidity in a large retrospec...

Authors: Gianluca Terrin, Maria Di Chiara, Giovanni Boscarino, Valentina Metrangolo, Francesca Faccioli, Elisa Onestà, Antonella Giancotti, Violante Di Donato, Viviana Cardilli and Mario De Curtis

PTSD in parents of children with severe diseases: a systematic review to face Covid-19 impact

The literature agrees on the impact of post-traumatic stress symptoms in parents of seriously ill children but there is less clarity about the real extent and gender differences of this psychopathological risk...

Authors: Martina Corsi, Alessandro Orsini, Virginia Pedrinelli, Andrea Santangelo, Carlo Antonio Bertelloni, Niccolò Carli, Rodolfo Buselli, Diego Peroni, Pasquale Striano, Liliana Dell’Osso and Claudia Carmassi

Risk factors for severity of thrombocytopenia in full term infants: a single center study

Neonatal thrombocytopenia (NT) (platelet count < 150 × 10⁹/L) is a common finding in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). The main aim of this study was to assess the prevalence, risk factors, and outcomes of...

Authors: Amira M. Saber, Shereen P. Aziz, Al Zahraa E. Almasry and Ramadan A. Mahmoud

Comprehensive and safe school strategy during COVID-19 pandemic

Although several studies have tried to evaluate the real efficacy of school closure for pandemic control over time, no definitive answer to this question has been given. Moreover, it has not been clarified whe...

Authors: Susanna Esposito, Nicola Cotugno and Nicola Principi

Molecular screening of PROKR2 gene in girls with idiopathic central precocious puberty

Prokineticin receptor 2 (PROKR2) loss of function mutations have been described as cause of hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. In 2017, a first case of central precocious puberty (CPP) caused by PROKR2 heterozygous g...

Authors: Francesca Aiello, Grazia Cirillo, Alessandra Cassio, Raffaella Di Mase, Gianluca Tornese, Giuseppina R. Umano, Emanuele Miraglia del Giudice and Anna Grandone

An estimation of the number of children requiring pediatric palliative care in Italy

Pediatric palliative care (PPC) addresses the physical and psychological needs of children suffering from life-limiting diseases. To define prevention and educational plans and to properly allocate resources, ...

Authors: Franca Benini, Mariadonata Bellentani, Laura Reali, Pierina Lazzarin, Lucia De Zen, Federico Pellegatta, Pierangelo Lora Aprile and Gianlorenzo Scaccabarozzi

Clinical warning of hemophagocytic syndrome caused by Epstein-Barr virus

This study aimed to compare the clinical features and laboratory tests of infectious mononucleosis (IM) and hemophagocytic syndrome (HLH) caused by Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) in 1–3-year-old children and to expl...

Authors: Jinjin Shi, Chu Chu, Min Yu, Dandan Zhang, Yuqin Li, Yujie Fan, Yixue Yu, Yali Luo and Weifang Zhou

Cystic fibrosis in Tuscany: evolution of newborn screening strategies over time to the present

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a life-threatening disease affecting about 1:3000 newborns in Caucasian populations. The introduction of newborn screening for cystic fibrosis (CF NBS) has improved the clinical outcome...

Authors: Matteo Botti, Vito Terlizzi, Michela Francalanci, Daniela Dolce, Maria Chiara Cavicchi, Anna Silvia Neri, Valeria Galici, Gianfranco Mergni, Lucia Zavataro, Claudia Centrone, Filippo Festini and Giovanni Taccetti

The child with medical complexity

Children with medical complexity represent a big challenge for the physicians, their families and the society as well. Although there is no clear definition of this type of patients, they are affected by a chr...

Authors: Manuela Gallo, Rino Agostiniani, Roberta Pintus and Vassilios Fanos

Proceedings of the 33rd Congress of the Italian Society of Neonatology, Lombardy Section, 31 January - 1 February 2020

Authors:

SARS-CoV-2 pandemia in Lombardy: the impact on family Paediatricians

As health care workers (HCWs) who care for children, who usually demonstrate milder symptoms than adults, family paediatricians have an increased risk of exposure to coronavirus. In April 2020, the Sindacato M...

Authors: Rinaldo Missaglia, Michael Belingheri, Laura Antolini, Monica de’ Angelis, Luca Brivio, Michele Augusto Riva and Simonetta Genovesi

Spectrum of thrombotic complications and their outcomes in Chinese children with primary nephrotic syndrome

Thromboembolism is a life-threatening, limb-threatening or organ-threatening complication that occurs in patients with primary nephrotic syndrome (NS). There are few studies on the spectrum, complications and ...

Authors: Yan-Li Lv, Na Guan, Jie Ding, Yong Yao, Hui-Jie Xiao, Xu-Hui Zhong, Fang Wang, Xiao-Yu Liu, Hong-Wen Zhang, Bai-Ge Su and Ke Xu

Criteria for referral of pediatric SARS-CoV-2 infection: a real-life experience in the pandemic era

A practical guidance on the management of children with COVID-19 to insure homogeneous criteria for referral to a higher-level facility, according to the disease severity, is pivotal in the pandemic era. A pan...

Authors: Carlotta Montagnani, Elisabetta Venturini, Manuela L’Erario, Chiara Tersigni, Barbara Bortone, Leila Bianchi, Francesca Menegazzo, Giuseppe Indolfi, Elena Chiappini and Luisa Galli

A neonatal cluster of novel coronavirus disease 2019: clinical management and considerations

Lately, one of the major clinical and public health issues has been represented by Coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) during pregnancy and the risk of transmission of the infection from mother to child. De...

Authors: Nicole Olivini, Francesca Ippolita Calò Carducci, Veronica Santilli, Maria Antonietta De Ioris, Alessia Scarselli, Dario Alario, Caterina Geremia, Mary Haywood Lombardi, Caterina Marabotto, Rosanna Mariani, Raffaele Edo Papa, Emanuela Peschiaroli, Raffaella Scrocca, Serena Sinibaldi, Andrea Smarrazzo, Pietro Stella…

Iatrogenic severe hyperglycemia due to parenteral administration of glucose in children – a case series

Iatrogenic severe hyperglycemia (ISH) caused by glucose-containing i.v. solution is a potentially fatal treatment error. The objective of this study was to investigate the causes, circumstances, course of dise...

Authors: Nora Bruns, Anja Große Lordemann, Tobias Rasche, Jochen Meyburg, Marcus Krüger, Christian Wieg, Alexander Gratopp, Marc Hoppenz, Friedhelm Heitmann, Thomas Hoppen, Günther Löffler, Ursula Felderhoff-Müser and Christian Dohna-Schwake

Basedow-Graves’ disease in a pediatric patient with Sticlker syndrome, a new endocrine finding to improve personalized treatment

Stickler syndrome is a connective tissue disorder with predominantly autosomal dominant inheritance, with ocular, auditory and joint involvement.

Authors: Roberta Onesimo, Cristina De Rose, Clelia Cipolla, Silvia Della Casa, Chiara Leoni, Annabella Salerni, Daniela Ricci and Giuseppe Zampino

Pooled prevalence and determinants of skilled birth attendant delivery in East Africa countries: a multilevel analysis of Demographic and Health Surveys

Skilled health professional assisted delivery is an effective strategy to reduce maternal and newborn mortality. Skilled assistant delivery can prevent about 16–33% of maternal and newborn mortality. Despite t...

Authors: Zemenu Tadesse Tessema and Getayeneh Antehunegn Tesema

Best practices, challenges and innovations in pediatrics in 2019

This paper runs through key progresses in epidemiology, pathomechanisms and therapy of various diseases in children that were issued in the Italian Journal of Pediatrics at the end of last year. Novel research...

Authors: Carlo Caffarelli, Francesca Santamaria, Angelica Santoro, Michela Procaccianti, Fabio Castellano, Francesca Fiori Nastro, Alberto Villani, Sergio Bernasconi and Giovanni Corsello

Determinants of postnatal care utilization in sub-Saharan Africa: a meta and multilevel analysis of data from 36 sub-Saharan countries

Globally, over 65% of maternal deaths occur during the first 42 days of postpartum while the same proportion of neonatal deaths occur during the first 7 days of life. In sab- Saharan Africa, 4.7 million mother...

Authors: Zemenu Tadesse Tessema, Lake Yazachew, Getayeneh Antehunegn Tesema and Achamyeleh Birhanu Teshale

The impact of pregnancy induced hypertension on low birth weight in Ethiopia: systematic review and meta-analysis

Even though neonatal mortality reduction is the major goal needed to be achieved by 2030, it is still unacceptably high especially in Ethiopia. In the other hand, low birth weight is the major cause of neonata...

Authors: Temesgen Getaneh, Ayenew Negesse, Getenet Dessie and Melaku Desta

Children with special health care needs attending emergency department in Italy: analysis of 3479 cases

Although children with special health care needs (CSHCN) represent a minority of the population, they go through more hospitalizations, more admissions to the Emergency Department (ED), and receive a major num...

Authors: Paola Cianci, Valeria D’Apolito, Alex Moretti, Massimo Barbagallo, Sabrina Paci, Maria Teresa Carbone, Riccardo Lubrano, Antonio Urbino, Carlo Dionisi Vici, Luigi Memo, Giuseppe Zampino, Giancarlo La Marca, Alberto Villani, Giovanni Corsello and Angelo Selicorni

Abdominal pain as first manifestation of lyme neuroborreliosis in children, case report and review of literature

Lyme neuroborreliosis can cause a variety of neurological manifestations. European children usually present facial nerve palsy, other cranial nerve palsies and aseptic meningitis.

Authors: Salvatore Savasta, Ivan Fiorito, Thomas Foiadelli, Anna Pichiecchio, Patrizia Cambieri, Bianca Mariani, Piero Marone and Gianluigi Marseglia

Lung ultrasound in outpatient approach to children with suspected COVID 19

Children with COVID 19 infection (CV19) generally have a mild disease whose main symptoms are fever and cough. Dyspnoea and hypoxemia are rarely reported and few data are available on the frequency and extent ...

Authors: Giuseppe Gregori and Roberto Sacchetti

Health-care organization for the management and surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 infection in children during pandemic in Campania region, Italy

In comparison with adults, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) infection in children has a milder course. The management of children with suspected or confirmed coronavirus disease (COVI...

Authors: Francesco Nunziata, Eugenia Bruzzese, Marco Poeta, Luca Pierri, Andrea Catzola, Gian Paolo Ciccarelli, Edoardo Vassallo, Emma Montella, Andrea Lo Vecchio and Alfredo Guarino

SAPHO syndrome: the supposed trigger by isotretinoin, the efficacy of adalimumab and the specter of depressive disorder: a case report

SAPHO (synovitis, acne, pustolosis, hyperostosis and osteitis) syndrome is a rare autoinflammatory chronic disorder, presenting with non-infectious osteitis, sterile joint inflammation and skin manifestations ...

Authors: Michele Luzzati, Gabriele Simonini, Cesare Filippeschi, Teresa Giani and Sandra Trapani

Update on resistance to thyroid hormone syndromeβ

Resistance to thyroid hormone syndrome (RTH) is an autosomal dominant or recessive genetic disease caused by mutation of either the thyroid hormone receptorβ (THR-β) gene or the thyroid hormone receptorα (THR-...

Authors: Hongping Sun, Lin Cao, Rendong Zheng, Shaofeng Xie and Chao Liu

Clinical significance of family accommodation and parental psychological distress in a sample of children and adolescents with obsessive-compulsive disorder aged 8-17 years old

Family Accommodation (FA) refers to the involvement of family members (especially parents) in the compulsive behaviors of children and adolescents with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (e.g. modifying family rout...

Authors: Maria Pontillo, Francesco Demaria, Maria Cristina Tata, Roberto Averna, Prisca Gargiullo, Maria Laura Pucciarini, Ornella Santonastaso, Tommaso Boldrini, Alberto Eugenio Tozzi and Stefano Vicari

High-throughput screening reveals novel mutations in spinal muscular atrophy patients

Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is an autosomal recessive hereditary disease associated with severe muscle atrophy and weakness in the limbs and trunk. The discovery of mutated genes is helpful in diagnosis and ...

Authors: Ruiping Zhang, Chunyu Gu, Linjie Pu, Yingtao Meng, Jianbo Shu and Chunquan Cai

Increased incidence of precocious and accelerated puberty in females during and after the Italian lockdown for the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic

The timing of puberty in girls is occurring at an increasingly early age. While a positive family history is recognised as a predisposing factor for early or precocious puberty, the role of environmental facto...

Authors: Stefano Stagi, Salvatore De Masi, Erica Bencini, Stefania Losi, Silvia Paci, Maria Parpagnoli, Franco Ricci, Daniele Ciofi and Chiara Azzari

Incidence and predictors of diabetic ketoacidosis among children with diabetes in west and east Gojjam zone referral hospitals, northern Ethiopia, 2019

Recurrent diabetic ketoacidosis in patients with known diabetes mellitus remains a relevant problem in pediatrics with an incidence of 1–10% per patient. Children may die because of cerebral edema and had a si...

Authors: Birtukan Assefa, Haymanot Zeleke, Rajalakshmi Murugan and Kalkidan Wondwossen

SHOX deficiency in children with growth impairment: evaluation of known and new auxological and radiological indicators

The phenotypic features of SHOX deficiency (SHOX-D) are highly variable and can be very mild, especially in young children. The aim of this retrospective study was to evaluate auxological and radiological indi...

Authors: Silvia Vannelli, Maria Baffico, Raffaele Buganza, Francesca Verna, Giulia Vinci, Daniele Tessaris, Gianpaolo Di Rosa, Alberto Borraccino and Luisa de Sanctis

Parent-adolescent communication on sexual and reproductive health issues and its associated factors in Ethiopia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Every year, 1.3 million young people reported to die from preventable causes of death. Parent-adolescent communication on sexuality is critical in informing youth about risk and protective behaviors which in t...

Authors: Maru Mekie, Dagne Addisu, Abenezer Melkie and Wubet Taklual

Dietary cholesterol supplementation and inhibitory factor 1 serum levels in two dizygotic Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome twins: a case report

Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome (SLOS) is a rare genetic neurodevelopmental disorder caused by the defect in the 7-dehydrocholesterol reductase. This defect leads to the deficiency of cholesterol biosynthesis with ...

Authors: Maurizio Delvecchio, Biagio Rapone, Simonetta Simonetti, Simona Fecarotta, Graziana De Carlo, Elvira Favoino, Maria Teresa Loverro, Anna Maria Isdraele Romano, Federica Taurino, Edoardo Di Naro and Antonio Gnoni

The Italian arm of the PREPARE study: an international project to evaluate and license a maternal vaccine against group B streptococcus

Group B streptococcus (GBS) is a leading cause of sepsis, pneumonia and meningitis in infants, with long term neurodevelopmental sequelae. GBS may be associated with poor pregnancy outcomes, including spontane...

Authors: Alberto Berardi, Tiziana Cassetti, Roberta Creti, Caterina Vocale, Simone Ambretti, Mario Sarti, Fabio Facchinetti, Stephen Cose, Paul Heath and Kirsty Le Doare

Italian inter-society expert panel position on radiological exposure in Neonatal Intensive Care Units

In the recent years, clinical progress and better medical assistance for pregnant women, together with the introduction of new complex technologies, has improved the survival of preterm infants. However, this ...

Authors: Antonella del Vecchio, Sergio Salerno, Massimo Barbagallo, Gaetano Chirico, Mauro Campoleoni, Vittorio Cannatà, Elisabetta Genovese, Claudio Granata, Andrea Magistrelli and Paolo Tomà

Metreleptin for the treatment of progressive encephalopathy with/without lipodystrophy (PELD) in a child with progressive myoclonic epilepsy: a case report

A number of genetic syndromes associated with variants in the BSCL2/seipin gene have been identified. Variants that cause skipping of exon 7 are associated with progressive encephalopathy with/without lipodystrop...

Authors: Stefania Pedicelli, Luca de Palma, Caterina Pelosini and Marco Cappa

Airway obstruction as the primary manifestation of infantile thyroid hemangioma

Thyroid hemangioma mostly occurs in adults and is extremely rare in infants. So far, only four pediatric cases of thyroid hemangioma have been reported, one of which has only been clinically diagnosed. Most of...

Authors: Yujian Liang, Ronghui Pu, Xueqiong Huang, Suping Li, Yingqian Chen and Wen Tang

How pediatric resident’s life has changed during the COVID-19 pandemic

Since the World Health Organization declared Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) a global pandemic, a few articles were published on the working experience of pediatric residents, especially from the most expo...

Authors: Martina Votto and Maria De Filippo

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on pediatric operations: a retrospective study of Chinese children

The aim of this study was to quantify the impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on pediatric operations, and establish preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative protocols to improve the pediatric...

Authors: Yi Wei, Chengjun Yu, Tian Xin Zhao, Tao Lin, H. E. Dawei, Sheng-de Wu and Guang-hui Wei

Autosomal recessive polycystic kidney disease: case report of a newborn with rare PKHD1 mutation, rapid renal enlargement and early fatal outcome

Autosomal recessive polycystic kidney disease (ARPKD; MIM#263200) is one of the most frequent pediatric renal cystic diseases, with an incidence of 1:20,000. It is caused by mutations of the PKHD1 gene, on chromo...

Authors: Gregorio Serra, Giovanni Corsello, Vincenzo Antona, Maria Michela D’Alessandro, Nicola Cassata, Marcello Cimador, Mario Giuffrè, Ingrid Anne Mandy Schierz and Ettore Piro

Clinical and imaging features of pediatric COVID-19

Pediatric COVID-19 is relatively mild and may vary from that in adults. This study was to investigate the epidemic, clinical, and imaging features of pediatric COVID-19 pneumonia for early diagnosis and treatm...

Authors: Yu Zhang, Ru-Ming Xie, Yu-Lin He, Li-Hong Xing, Li Dong, Jian-Zhong Zhang, Wei-Hong Xing, Xiao-Yan Lv, Yi-Bo Lu, Qiang Liu, Ling-Bo Lin, Gui-Zeng Liu, Li Li, Pan Li, Yuan-Zhong Xie, Zhi-Yu Ni…

Somatic development in children with Shwachman-Diamond syndrome

Shwachman-Diamond syndrome (SDS) is a rare genetic, multi-systemic disease characterized by exocrine pancreatic insufficiency, immune deficiency, bone marrow failure and skeletal abnormalities. Most patients p...

Authors: Agnieszka Bogusz-Wójcik, Honorata Kołodziejczyk, Maja Klaudel-Dreszler, Grzegorz Oracz, Joanna Pawłowska and Mieczysław Szalecki