Age-, season- and gender-specific reference intervals of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 for healthy children (0 ~ 18 years old) in Nanning area of China.

Establishing specific reference intervals (RIs) of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 [25(OH)D] for children is essential for improving the accuracy of diagnosis and prognosis monitoring of diseases such as rickets and growth retardation. The study including 6,627 healthy children was conducted to establish specific RIs of 25(OH)D for children in Nanning area of China. The results showed that there were statistically significant differences among age, season, and gender of serum 25(OH)D levels, and the age-specific RIs of serum 25(OH)D were 20.3 ~ 53.6 ng/mL for 0 ~ ≤ 1 year and 18.9 ~ 49.6 ng/mL for 2 ~ ≤ 3 years. The age-, season-specific RIs of serum 25(OH)D for 4 ~ ≤ 6 years in spring-summer and autumn-winter were 15.8 ~ 42.6 ng/mL and 15.2 ~ 37.7 ng/mL, respectively. The age-, gender-specific RIs of serum 25(OH)D for 7 ~ ≤ 18 years for males and females were 12.1 ~ 36.1 ng/mL and 10.8 ~ 35.3 ng/mL, respectively. This study successfully established the RIs of serum 25(OH)D, which may help to improve disease diagnosis and monitoring for children in the Nanning area of China.

Performance evaluation between two automated biochemical analyzer systems: Roche Cobas 8000 and Mindray BS2000M.

Background: The values of biomarkers play a central role in routine clinical decision-making. Whereas the performance of different automated chemical analyzers remains unclear. To determine the performance of different platforms, we compared the consistency and accuracy between Roche Cobas 8000 and Mindray BS2000M. Methods: A total of 1869 remaining serum samples were collected. CK, LDH-1, RBP, Cys-C, IgA, IgM, and IgG were assessed using paired t-test, Passing-Bablok regression analysis, and Bland-Altman analysis according to CLSI EP5-A3. Results: There were significant differences in the average bias of all items between the two machines (P<0.001). Because the 95% confidence interval of intercept A included 0, CK, LDH-1, Cys-C and IgG did not show systematic error in Passing-Bablok regression analysis. The confidence interval of 95% of the slope B in IgM contained 1, and there was no difference in the two measurements in IgM. Except for IgA, the r values and correlation coefficient of all items were higher than 0.91, which showed that the correlation and consistency were good. The Bland-Altman analysis showed that two instruments had more than 95% of the points apart from CK, LDH-1, and IgA. Conclusions: It can be considered that the two instruments have good correlation and consistency in CK, LDH-1, RBP, Cys-C, IgM, and IgG, and the two instruments are interchangeable and can replace each other.

D-Dimer Combined With CRP Can Improve the Differential Value of Bacterial Meningitis and Tuberculous Meningitis.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the diagnostic value of the coagulation marker D-dimer and its combination with the traditional marker C-reactive protein (CRP) in distinguishing bacterial meningitis (BM) from tuberculous meningitis (TM). METHODS: We performed a retrospective study on specimens from 173 patients with meningitis who were hospitalized at the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Guangxi, China, from 2012 through 2020. The patient records were divided into the BM group and the TM group, and hematological parameters D-dimer and CRP were evaluated for the 2 groups. RESULTS: The levels of D-dimer and CRP in the BM group were significantly higher than those levels in the TM group (P ˂.001 for each), and the sensitivity and specificity of the combined detection of the 2 markers was 86.3% to 100%; the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve reached 0.983 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.966-0.999). CONCLUSION: D-dimer testing has high specificity in distinguishing between BM and TM; CRP testing also has high sensitivity. The combined diagnosis of the 2 biomarkers helps to distinguish TM from BM.

Dose optimisation of voriconazole with therapeutic drug monitoring in children: a single-centre experience in China.

The pharmacokinetic profile of voriconazole is highly variable, rendering inconsistent and/or inadequate dosing, especially in children <2 years old. A retrospective analysis was performed in children receiving voriconazole with at least one plasma trough level (Ctrough) monitored. Statistical analyses were performed to examine the dose-exposure relationship as well as other factors potentially affecting voriconazole Ctrough in children of different ages. A total of 107 paediatric patients were included, of whom 75 were <2 years old. The voriconazole Ctrough was highly variable in patients aged <2 years and those aged 2-12 years. Only 47.7% of children reached the therapeutic target of 1.0-5.5 mg/L at initial dosing, whereas 48.6% of Ctrough values were subtherapeutic and 3.7% were supratherapeutic. The mean maintenance dose to reach an adequate Ctrough was 5.9 mg/kg compared with 5.1 mg/kg, resulting in insufficient levels (P = 0.005) in children aged <2 years. In this age group, the 5 to <7 mg/kg dose range significantly increased the chance of reaching the therapeutic target compared with the 3 to <5 mg/kg dose range (56.7% vs. 25.8%; P = 0.014). Overall, factors such as sex, age, liver function, renal function and co-administered medications explained only 15.9% of variability in voriconazole exposure. Co-administration of omeprazole significantly increased the voriconazole level (P = 0.032), likely through CYP2C19 inhibition. This is the largest series to date describing voriconazole dose-exposure relationships in children aged <2 years. A starting maintenance dose of 5 to <7 mg/kg intravenously twice daily may be required for most children of Asian origin to reach the therapeutic target.

Fabrication and characterization of core/shell structured TiO2/polyaniline nanocomposite.

A novel core/shell structured TiO(2)/polyaniline nanocomposite was fabricated by grafting aniline on aminobenzoate monolayer that is chemically adsorbed on the TiO(2) nanocrystal surface. The formation and nanostructure of the nanocomposite were investigated by FT-IR and UV-Vis spectra, TEM, FE-SEM, and TG-DTA analysis. Adsorption of aminobenzoate on the TiO(2) surface is an effective method to obtain the uniform nanocomposite. The thickness of polyaniline layer coating on the TiO(2) nanocrystal surface can be controlled in a range of 2-5 nm by this method. A photoelectrochemical study was carried out on the TiO(2)/polyaniline nanocomposite, and found that polyaniline in the nanocomposite acted as a visible-light sensitizer in a photoelectrochemical reaction. The sensitization effect increased with increasing binding strength between polyaniline and TiO(2). A dye-sensitized solar cell with a short circuit current density of 0.19 mA/cm(2) and an open circuit voltage of 0.35 V was fabricated by using the TiO(2)/polyaniline nanocomposite film as a sensitized electrode.