Tuberculosis contact-tracing results in childhood: a retrospective study in a tertiary-care children's hospital in Turkey.

BACKGROUND: Smear-positive adults with tuberculosis are the main source of childhood tuberculosis. The evaluation of children exposed to tuberculosis and determination of the disease stages are the cornerstones of managing childhood tuberculosis. AIM: To determine the frequency of tuberculous contact, latent tuberculosis infection and tuberculosis disease in children who were in contact with smear-positive adults. METHODS: This is a single-centre, retrospective study. The medical records of children exposed to tuberculosis (<18 years old) between 2014 and 2018 were investigated. After diagnosing the index cases, the children were referred to the hospital. To identify the children in contact with adults with tuberculosis, a careful medical history, demographic features and physical examination, tuberculin skin test, postero-anterior and lateral chest radiographs, and, if necessary, chest computed tomography and microbiological tests were undertaken. The children's final diagnosis, treatment regimens and follow-up were documented. The sensitivity, specificity and positive and negative predictive values, tuberculin skin test and chest radiograph imaging were assessed and compared with computed tomography results. RESULTS: A total of 150 paediatric patients were exposed to 88 index cases. These were fathers in 29.3% of cases and mothers in 10% of cases. Of the children, 131 (87.3%) were asymptomatic, and physical examination was normal in all children, apart from one who had respiratory symptoms. The tuberculin skin test results were positive in 60 (43%) patients and chest radiograph was abnormal in 100 (66%) children. Findings were consistent with tuberculosis in 34 (40%) of the 84 patients who underwent computed tomography. Fifty (38.5%) of the remaining children were defined as having been in contact with a case of tuberculosis, 41 (31.5%) had latent tuberculous infection and 39 (30%) had tuberculosis disease. CONCLUSION: Pulmonary tuberculosis is asymptomatic in most children but with meticulous use of computed tomography it can be detected in asymptomatic children who have had close contact with tuberculosis.Abbreviation: AFB: acid-fast bacilli; AUC: area under the curve; BCG: bacillus Calmette-Guérin; CI: confidence interval; CT: computed tomography; CXR: chest radiograph; HIV: human immunodeficiency virus; ICD-10: International Classification of Diseases 10; LTBI: latent tuberculosis infection; MDR-TB: multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis; NPV: negative predictive value; PCR: polymerase chain reaction; PPV: positive predictive value; ROC: receiver operating characteristics; SD: standard deviation; TB: tuberculosis; TST: tuberculin skin test; XDR-TB: extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis.

Community-acquired S. aureus infection in childhood: a multi-center study.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of community-acquired methicillin-resistant S. aureus (CA-MRSA) has been increasing worldwide. We aimed to investigate the prevalence of MRSA in community-acquired S. aureus infections, the risk factors for CA-MRSA infection and the clinical features of CA-MRSA. METHODS: A multi-center study with prospective and retrospective sections was conducted. Patients ≥ 3 months old and ≤18 years of age who were diagnosed with community-acquired S. aureus infections were included in this study and the patients` information were reviewed from the medical and microbiological database of the hospital. A standard question form about living conditions and exposure risk factors was administered to the parents of patients. The CA-MRSA infections were compared with the methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (CAMSSA) infections in terms of the queried risk factors and clinical variables. RESULTS: We identified 334 pediatric patients with S. aureus infection, 58 (17.4%) had an infection with CAMRSA. The refugee rate was higher in the CA-MRSA group. There was no significant difference regarding the exposure risk. The treatment modalities and outcomes were similar. CONCLUSIONS: The study was not able to show reliable clinical variables or epidemiological risk factors except for being a refugee for CA-MRSA infections. Empirical antibiotic treatment should therefore be determined according to the local CA-MRSA prevalence in patients presenting with a possible staphylococcus infection.

Bacteremic and Nonbacteremic Brucellosis in Children in Turkey.

INTRODUCTION: Human brucellosis is one of the most common zoonotic infections in the world. The definitive diagnosis of brucellosis is based on cultured Brucella organisms from blood or other tissue samples. We aimed to compare bacteremic and nonbacteremic brucellosis patients with demographical, epidemiological, clinical and laboratory features and determine the predictive factors affecting blood culture positivity. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Children aged 1 month to 18 years who were followed up with the diagnosis of brucellosis between January 2005 and March 2021 were included in this retrospective study. According to the isolation of Brucella melitensis in blood culture, the patients were divided into two groups as bacteremic and nonbacteremic and compared in terms of demographic, clinical and laboratory characteristics. RESULTS: One hundred eighty-nine (116 male, 61.4%) patients diagnosed with brucellosis were included in the study. There were 76 (40.2%) bacteremic and 113 (59.8%) nonbacteremic patients. Bacteremic patients were younger than nonbacteremic patients. Fever, arthralgia, hepatomegaly and splenomegaly were significantly higher in the culture positive group. High levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) were found to be significant in the bacteremic group. CONCLUSION: In our study, history of fever and arthralgia, hepatomegaly and splenomegaly in physical examination and high CRP, ALT and AST levels in the biochemical analysis were important factors determining blood culture positivity.

Factors associated with acyclovir nephrotoxicity in children: data from 472 pediatric patients from the last 10 years.

Acyclovir may cause acute kidney injury (AKI) due to the accumulation of relatively insoluble acyclovir crystals in renal tubules. The aim of this study was to evaluate risk factors associated with acyclovir-related AKI in children. Between January 2010 and December 2019, pediatric recipients of intravenous (IV) acyclovir were evaluated retrospectively. There were a total of 472 patients [249 (52.7%) boys] of which 32 (6.8%) had AKI [15 (46.8%) boys]. Patients with AKI had greater mean age, baseline creatinine level, and duration of treatment compared to patients without AKI (p<0.001). In the AKI group, concomitant nephrotoxic drug use was more frequent (p=0.032), and the percentage of patients treated with 1500 mg/m2/day dosage was higher (p<0.001). AKI was diagnosed at a mean of 4.3 ± 2.5 days after acyclovir initiation and creatinine levels returned to normal at a mean of 7.3 ± 3.6 days after AKI diagnosis. Only eight patients (25%) had vomiting which led to suspicion of AKI. Being older than 100.5 months (HR: 4.501, 95% CI: 1.802-11.241; p=0.001), use of 1500 mg/m2/day acyclovir (HR: 9.536, 95% CI: 2.157-42.158; p=0.003) and use of concomitant nephrotoxic drugs (HR: 5.043, 95% CI: 2.289-11.109; p<0.001) were the factors that independently increased the likelihood of nephrotoxicity.Conclusion: Most patients were asymptomatic when they were diagnosed with AKI. Clinicians should be aware of AKI risk in pediatric patients with risk factors (age >100.5 months, 1500 mg/m2/day dosage, concomitant use of nephrotoxic drugs). Acyclovir dosing should be evaluated in prospective, multicenter studies in order to identify the lowest possible therapeutic doses that do not increase AKI risk. What is Known: • Although acyclovir is mostly well tolerated, nephrotoxicity may be seen due to the accumulation of acyclovir crystals in renal tubules. • Older age, obesity, and concomitant use of other nephrotoxic drugs are reported to be risk factors for acyclovir-induced AKI in children. What is New: • In this study, pediatric patients with acyclovir-induced AKI were older, received treatment longer, received concomitant nephrotoxic drugs more commonly, and had higher acyclovir dosage and baseline creatinine levels compared to those without AKI. • Being older than 100.5 months of age, use of 1500 mg/m2/day dosage and use of nephrotoxic drugs concomitantly appear to be the prominent risk factors for AKI development in children treated with acyclovir.

Pediatric subdural empyema as a complication of meningitis: could CSF protein/CSF glucose ratio be used to screen for subdural empyema?

Subdural empyema (SDE) is a rare condition which can appear secondary to meningitis in childhood, especially in infants. This study was planned to evaluate and compare clinical and laboratory features, treatment, and outcome of children with SDE to those with acute bacterial meningitis (ABM) without SDE. The electronic medical files of 266 patients diagnosed with ABM between January 2009 and December 2019 were evaluated. Patients' demographic and clinical features, laboratory results, cranial imaging findings, treatment, and outcomes were recorded. SDE was identified in 10 patients, 3.7% of all diagnosed with meningitis. The etiology of SDE was identified in eight (80%). The most common responsible pathogen was Streptococcus pneumoniae. Cranial imaging was performed between the 2nd and 13th days of admission, and the most common reason of performing cranial imaging was persistence of fever. Two patients were healed with 4-6 weeks of antibiotic treatment without surgery, eight (80%) needed surgical intervention.Conclusion: The clinical signs and symptoms of SDE may be subtle. If the fever persists or focal neurological findings are seen during the treatment of bacterial meningitis, SDE should be suspected. Furthermore, patients with ABM who are determined to have a protein-to-glucose ratio in the cerebrospinal fluid above 4.65 should be carefully monitored for SDE development. What is known: • Subdural empyema may develop subsequently to meningitis, especially in the infant age group in whom very little is known in terms of disease characteristics. • Delay in diagnosis and treatment can cause long-term neurologic sequelae and mortality. What is new: • Persistence or relapse of fever during the treatment of acute meningitis is an important warning sign for SDE even if there are no other symptoms. • Children with subdural empyema secondary to bacterial meningitis have higher protein-to-glucose ratio in the CSF, and a threshold of ˃ 4.65 was determined to demonstrate 100% sensitivity and 50.7% specificity.

Risk Factors of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia Blood Stream Infections: Comparison With Other Gram-Negative Blood Stream Infections in Children.

BACKGROUND: Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, is a nonfermentative, aerobic, Gram-negative bacilli which is intrinsically resistance to several antibiotics. Treatment options for this bacteria are quite different from the other Gram-negative bacilli, which can represent a therapeutic challenge. To initiate appropriate empiric treatment and to reduce mortality, differentiation of S. maltophilia from other Gram-negative bacteria is critically important. The aim of this study is to distinguish the risk factors of S. maltophilia blood stream infections (BSI) from other Gram-negative BSI. METHODS: This was a retrospective, case-control study. Patients with S. maltophilia BSI were selected as cases and patients with non-S. maltophilia Gram-negative BSI were selected as controls. Demographic and clinical characteristics of patients were recorded. RESULTS: Forty-eight cases with S. maltophilia BSI and 144 controls were enrolled in the study. Risk factors for S. maltophilia BSI compared with the control group includes prior use of antibiotics, especially carbapenem, pediatric intensive care unit stay, mechanical ventilator use, indwelling catheters and duration of hospitalization. CONCLUSIONS: Breakthrough infection by S. maltophilia can occur in severely ill patients being treated with carbapenem. In the presence of risk factors, to reduce morbidity and mortality, S. maltophilia should be kept in mind when starting empiric treatment.

Dynamic thiol/disulphide homeostasis and pathogenesis of Kawasaki disease.

BACKGROUND: Kawasaki disease (KD) is an acute, self-limited, systemic vasculitis of unknown etiology. In the present study, we investigated whether there is a relationship between KD and dynamic thiol/disulphide homeostasis. METHODS: This case-control study involved KD patients and healthy controls. Plasma total, native and disulphide thiol and the disulphide/native, disulphide/total and native thiol/total thiol ratios of all patients and the control group were analyzed simultaneously. RESULTS: A total of 20 patients with KD (male/female, 12/8) and 25 age- and gender-matched healthy controls (male/female, 12/13) were evaluated. Native, total thiol and native thiol/total thiol ratio were significantly lower in KD patients than in the control group (P < 0.001). In contrast, disulphide thiol, disulphide/native thiol and disulphide/total thiol ratios were significantly higher in KD patients than control subjects (P < 0.001). In KD patients with coronary artery lesion (CAL), the native thiol and total thiol were significantly lower than in KD patients without CAL. In KD patients with CAL, the ratios of disulphide/total thiol and disulphide/native thiol were significantly higher than in those without CAL (P = 0.02 and P = 0.02, respectively), whereas the ratio of native/total thiol was significantly lower (P = 0.02). CONCLUSION: The KD patients had lower plasma thiol (native and total) and higher disulphide thiol than controls, indicating that dynamic thiol/disulphide homeostasis might be an important indicator of inflammation in KD. Alteration and shifting of thiol/disulphide homeostasis to the oxidized side are correlated with the pathogenesis of KD and CAL.

Encefalitis por herpes simple resistente al aciclovir en un niño tratado satisfactoriamente con el agregado de foscarnet: A propósito de un caso / Acyclovir Unresponsive Herpes Simplex Encephalitis in a child successfully treated with the addition of Foscarnet: Case report

La encefalitis por herpes simple (EHS) es la causa más frecuente de encefalitis focal esporádica en todo el mundo. El aciclovir es el tratamiento preferido para la EHS desde la década de 1980. Después del uso generalizado del aciclovir, se redujo la tasa de mortalidad relacionada con la EHS pero surgieron cepas resistentes. Se ha informado que la incidencia de virus del herpes simple (VHS) resistente al aciclovir es del 0,5 % y del 3,5 %-10 % aproximadamente en los pacientes inmunocompetentes e inmunocomprometidos, respectivamente. En este artículo, describimos el caso de un paciente inmunocompetente de 12 años de edad con encefalitis por VHS-1 tratado satisfactoriamente con aciclovir y foscarnet. En el caso de una condición clínica que desmejora con el tratamiento con aciclovir, incluso si no se demuestra un aumento de la carga viral del VHS en el líquido cefalorraquídeo, se podría considerar la posibilidad de EHS resistente al aciclovir y el agregado de foscarnet al tratamiento con aciclovir.

Herpes simplex encephalitis (HSE) is the most common cause of sporadic focal encephalitis worldwide. Acyclovir is the treatment of choice of HSE since the 1980s. After the widespread use of acyclovir, HSE related mortality rate had reduced but resistant strains emerged. Acyclovir resistant HSV incidence was reported as about 0.5 % and 3.5 %-10 % in immunocompetent and immunocompromised patients, respectively. Herein, a 12-year-old immunocompetent patient with HSV-1 encephalitis who was successfully treated with combined acyclovir and foscarnet therapy is described. In the case of deteriorating clinical condition under acyclovir treatment even if the absence of demonstration of increased CSF HSV viral load, the possibility of acyclovir resistant HSE and the addition of foscarnet to the acyclovir treatment might be considered.

Acyclovir Unresponsive Herpes Simplex Encephalitis in a child successfully treated with the addition of Foscarnet: Case report. / Encefalitis por herpes simple resistente al aciclovir en un niño tratado satisfactoriamente con el agregado de foscarnet: A propósito de un caso.

Herpes simplex encephalitis (HSE) is the most common cause of sporadic focal encephalitis worldwide. Acyclovir is the treatment of choice of HSE since the 1980s. After the widespread use of acyclovir, HSE related mortality rate had reduced but resistant strains emerged. Acyclovir resistant HSV incidence was reported as about 0.5 % and 3.5 %-10 % in immunocompetent and immunocompromised patients, respectively. Herein, a 12-year-old immunocompetent patient with HSV-1 encephalitis who was successfully treated with combined acyclovir and foscarnet therapy is described. In the case of deteriorating clinical condition under acyclovir treatment even if the absence of demonstration of increased CSF HSV viral load, the possibility of acyclovir resistant HSE and the addition of foscarnet to the acyclovir treatment might be considered.

La encefalitis por herpes simple (EHS) es la causa más frecuente de encefalitis focal esporádica en todo el mundo. El aciclovir es el tratamiento preferido para la EHS desde la década de 1980. Después del uso generalizado del aciclovir, se redujo la tasa de mortalidad relacionada con la EHS pero surgieron cepas resistentes. Se ha informado que la incidencia de virus del herpes simple (VHS) resistente al aciclovir es del 0,5 % y del 3,5 %-10 % aproximadamente en los pacientes inmunocompetentes e inmunocomprometidos, respectivamente. En este artículo, describimos el caso de un paciente inmunocompetente de 12 años de edad con encefalitis por VHS-1 tratado satisfactoriamente con aciclovir y foscarnet. En el caso de una condición clínica que desmejora con el tratamiento con aciclovir, incluso si no se demuestra un aumento de la carga viral del VHS en el líquido cefalorraquídeo, se podría considerar la posibilidad de EHS resistente al aciclovir y el agregado de foscarnet al tratamiento con aciclovir.

A Case of Recrudescence Plasmodium falciparum Malaria Treated with Atovaquone-Proguanil.

Malaria is a potentially life-threatening disease caused by infection with the Plasmodium protozoa transmitted by an infective female Anopheles mosquito. Despite successful control programs in many countries, malaria remains to be a major disease burden worldwide, with approximately 584,000 deaths annually. The incidence of the disease and responsible species may differ due to increased human movements between countries. Plasmodium falciparum infection carries a poor prognosis with a high mortality if untreated, but it has an excellent prognosis if diagnosed early and treated appropriately. In the present study, we described a patient diagnosed with falciparum malaria and treated with atovaquone-proguanil who had a history of traveling to Uganda.

Two cases of Kawasaki disease presented with acute febrile jaundice.

Kawasaki disease is an acute, systemic vasculitis of unknown etiology. Although gastrointestinal involvement does not belong to the classic diagnostic criteria; diarrhea, abdominal pain, hepatic dysfunction, hydrops of gallbladder, and acute febrile cholestatic jaundice are reported in patients with Kawasaki disease. We describe here two cases presented with fever, and acute jaundice as initial features of Kawasaki disease.

[Screening of Corynebacterium diphtheriae, Corynebacterium ulcerans and Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis in throat swab specimens of children with upper respiratory tract infections]. / Üst solunum yolu enfeksiyonu bulgulari ile basvuran çocuklarin bogaz sürüntü örneklerinde Corynebacterium diphtheriae, Corynebacterium ulcerans ve Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis suslarinin arastirilmasi.

Although a significant decrease has been reported in the incidence of diphteria in many regions of the world following the routine diphtheria immunization programs, the emergence of new cases indicated that toxigenic strains are still circulating in the community. Diphtheria vaccine does not provide protection against asymptomatic carriage and colonization of non-toxigenic Corynebacterium diphtheriae. It is a known fact that invasive infections may arise from non-toxigenic C.diphtheriae strains that the non-toxigenic strains can become toxigenic strains leading to diphteria. It is also known that there is a risk of diphteria outbreaks due to decreased antitoxin level and inadequate adult immunization programs. In our country, there is no routine surveillance of toxigenic and non-toxigenic C.diphtheriae. In the present study we aimed to investigate the presence of C.diphtheriae, Corynebacterium ulcerans and Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis in children presenting with the symptoms of upper respiratory tract infections that might be confused with those moderate diphteria, in order to highlight the requirement of microbiological surveillance and to create awareness about these microorganisms among public health experts, microbiologists and clinicians. Throat swab specimens were obtained from children who were admitted to the pediatric outpatient clinics, in Dr. Sami Ulus Obstectrics, Children Health and Diseases Educational and Research Hospital, with upper respiratory tract infections between 1 February 2016-22 March 2016. The specimens were inoculated in 5% sheep blood agar plates. The plates that were incubated in appropriate conditions, were evaluated for Group A beta hemolytic streptococcocci. Subsequently, culture plates were sent to the Public Health Institution of Turkey, National Respiratory Pathologens Reference Laboratories for the investigation of the presence of C.diphtheriae, C.ulcerans and C.pseudotuberculosis. The growth in each plate were collected with a sterile swab and inoculated in tryptic soy broth. Following 2 hours of incubation at 37oC, subcultures were inoculated in cystine-tellurite-blood agar (CTBA) and 5% sheep-blood agar plates; after an overnight incubation tellurite-reducing colonies were inoculated in Tinsdale agar plates. The suspected colonies with positive cystinase activity were identified by conventional methods and also with Coryne API (Biomerieux, France) systems. Toxicity tests (ELEK, PCR) were performed to investigate whether the C.diphtheriae strains were producing toxins. A total of 500 patients were involved in the study. Of these 260 (52%) were girls and 240 (48%) were boys with a mean age of 76 (range, 21-213) months. All patients except one were fully vaccinated with boosters. Most common presenting symptoms of the patients were fever (19.8%), sore throat (52.6%), cough (49.2%), tonsillar hyperemia (97.6%), presence of crypt (24.6%), and membrane over tonsils (1%). Group A beta-hemolytic streptococcocci were detected in the throat swab cultures of 66 (%13.2) patients. Genotypically toxin negative C.diphtheriae biovar gravis was identified in the throat swab cultures of 3 patients (2 girls and 1 boy). The tonsils were hyperemic and hypertrophic in all the patients with C.diphtheriae biovar gravis. C.ulcerans and C.pseudotuberculosis were detected in none of the patients. It is considered that similar regular cross-sectional studies or routine screening programs are expected to raise awareness about this forgotten microorganism both epidemiologically and microbiologically.

Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in Pediatric Patients in a Single Tertiary Hospital in Ankara.

OBJECTIVE: Leishmaniasis is an infectious disease that is caused by a protozoan parasite of the Leishmania genus and that occurs worldwide. Leishmaniasis is endemic in southeastern Turkey and the neighboring Middle Eastern countries. The purpose of this study was to describe the clinical characteristics of patients admitted to our hospital with a diagnosis of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL). METHODS: A total of 16 CL patients [11 (69%) boys and five (31%) girls] were admitted between January 2014 and December 2015. The data of the patients were retrospectively recorded from their medical records. RESULTS: Their mean age was 74.3±32.3 months (range: 1-10.5 years). Double lesions were most commonly seen in eight (50%) patients. The face and neck was the most commonly involved site (87.5% of the patients). Skin smears for a parasitological examination were positive in nine (56%) patients. Two patients (12.5%) with limb lesions were treated with intralesional meglumine antimoniate. Fourteen patients were treated with systemic agents. CONCLUSION: We felt that the increase in human movement that include travels and forced migration due to the war might make it possible for CL to appear in non-endemic provinces such as Ankara. In particular, in patients with painless cutaneous lesion(s) who came from endemic areas such as Syria, CL should be kept in mind by the clinicians that residing in even non-endemic areas .

A Rare Pediatric Case of Neurocysticercosis Misdiagnosed As Brain Abscess.

Neurocysticercosis is a parasitic infection of the central nervous system caused by the larval stage of Taenia solium. Although this zoonotic infection is one of the major public health problems in some developing countries, it is extremely rare in Turkey. In this article, we present the case of a pediatric patient with neurocysticercosis who was misdiagnosed with brain abscess because of focal seizures in another hospital.

Clinical and microbiological features of resistant gram-negative bloodstream infections in children.

BACKGROUND: Bloodstream infections (BSIs) caused by Gram-negative (GN) bacteria cause significant morbidity and mortality. There is a worldwide increase in the reported incidence of resistant microorganisms; therefore, surveillance programs are important to define resistance patterns of GN microorganisms causing BSIs. The objective of this study was to describe the clinical and microbiological features of resistant GN BSIs in a tertiary pediatric hospital in Turkey. METHODS: Patients between 1 month and 18 years of age hospitalized between January 2005 and December 2012 were included in this study. The presence of ESBL and AmpC type beta-lactamase activity were evaluated using the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) disk diffusion and double-disk synergy tests. RESULTS: A total of 209 resistant GN bacterial BSI episodes were identified in 192 patients. Of 192 children, 133 (69.2%) were aged ≤48 months of age. Sixty-six (31.6%) of the BSIs were considered community-acquired and 143 (68.4%) were hospital-acquired infections. The most common isolates were non-fermenting GN bacteria (n=117, 55.9%). The major causative pathogens were Pseudomonas spp. in non-fermenting GN bacteria. The resistance rates to imipenem for Pseudomonas spp. and Acinetobacter spp. were 40.5% and 41.6%, respectively. The most common isolates in fatal patients were Pseudomonas spp. followed by Escherichia coli. The overall 28-day mortality rate was 16.3%. CONCLUSIONS: Although our study was performed at a single center and represents a local population, based on this study, it is concluded that surveillance programs and studies of novel antibiotics for resistant GN bacteria focusing on pediatric patients are required.

Does Helicobacter pylori play a role in the pathogenesis of non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis?

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to investigate whether Helicobacter pylori plays a role in the pathogenesis and severity of non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis, and its relationship with gastroesophageal reflux (GER). METHODS: Forty-one patients and 16 controls between 5 and 18 years of age were enrolled. H. pylori was investigated on polymerase chain reaction and culture in gastric juice (GJ) and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF). Urea breath test (UBT) was also used for defining H. pylori infection. GER was detected on 24 h pH monitoring or scintigraphy. Computed tomography (CT) scoring was used to quantify the severity and extent of bronchiectasis. RESULTS: Nine patients (22%) in the bronchiectasis group (BG) and three patients (18.8%) in the control group (CG) had H. pylori-positive BALF. Sixteen BG patients (39%) and seven CG patients (43.8%) had H. pylori-positive GJ. UBT was positive in 11 BG patients (26.8%) and in three CG patients (18.8%). H. pylori positivity in BALF, GJ and UBT was not significantly different between the two groups (P > 0.05). Six patients with GER and five patients without GER in BG had H. pylori-positive BALF and GJ (P = 0.827). No association was found between BALF H. pylori positivity and forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1 ) in BG. CT score was significantly higher in BG patients with H. pylori-positive compared with H. pylori-negative BALF (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Helicobacter pylori is not associated with the pathogenesis of bronchiectasis but it may be responsible for the severity of the disease.

Evaluation of complicated and uncomplicated parapneumonic effusion in children.

Parapneumonic effusion (PPE) and empyema are most often seen as a complication of bacterial pneumonia and occasionally associated with atypical bacteria or viruses. The aims of this study were to describe and compare demographic characteristics, clinical, laboratory, microbiological findings and treatment modalities of patients with PPE and empyema. We retrospectively reviewed 116 pediatric patients with PPE and empyema. Seventy (60.3%) had pleural empyema and 46 patients (39.6%) had PPE. The median age of patients with empyema [72.0 months (IQR 68.0 months)] was lower than the patients with PPE [92.5 (IQR 80.0 months)] (p=0.003). Children in the empyema group had significantly more dyspnea symptoms than the children with PPE (p=0.022). Mean fever duration before hospitalization was similar in both groups. Streptococcus pneumoniae and group A streptococcus were the most common causes of empyema. All of the patients were treated with intravenous antibiotics. In addition to medical treatment, tube thoracostomy was performed in 59 of 70 (84.3%) patients in empyema group; 27 (45.8%) of them required intrapleural fibrinolysis also. In the presence of antibiotic treatment failure or in cases with moderate or large pleural effusion with loculations and clinical deterioration; it is necessary to perform drainage of the purulent fluid by tube thoracostomy, to add intrapleural fibrinolytics or to perform video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS), in order to enhance prompt recovery.