Streptococcus gallolyticus Subspecies (subsp.) pasteurianus Meningitis in a 7-week-old Boy.

Meningitis caused by Streptococcus gallolyticus subspecies (subsp.) pasteurianus is a rare complication with 14 cases reported in literature worldwide between 2003-2023, with the majority of the cases occurring before 4 weeks of life and with preceding symptoms. This is a case report of an infection without any preceding symptoms. A previously healthy 7-week-old boy presented to the hospital with a fever for 1 day. Blood and cerebrospinal fluid cultures ultimately grew Streptococcus gallolyticus subsp. pasteurianus. The magnetic resonance imaging was consistent with meningitis. The boy received 21 days of intravenous antibiotics before discharge. At subsequent visits, the boy had no neurological sequelae, normal hearing tests, and appeared to have met all developmental milestones. The older age of infant should not discount the differential diagnosis for meningitis, which may delay further work up such as a lumbar puncture. Group D streptococcus is an uncommon cause of infantile sepsis that can lead to several complications such as meningitis and bacteremia. In this case, the infant's subsequent post-meningitis clinical course has been unremarkable. The history of meningitis poses increased risk for abnormal neurodevelopmental outcome. This case study highlights the importance of keeping meningitis on the differential diagnosis for an infant with fever. If there is a concern for meningitis, further workup should be performed without delay.

Vaccine-Strain Varicella Virus Transmitted to a Term Infant Following Maternal Postpartum Vaccination.

Varicella is a highly contagious disease caused by Varicella-zoster virus (VZV). The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) adopted the routine administration of varicella vaccine to varicella non-immune mothers postpartum before leaving the facility per the Advisory Committee in Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommendation of Varicella prevention. While the vaccine is well-tolerated, a live attenuated vaccine has the potential to cause clinical symptoms and complications, including rash. Secondary transmission of the vaccine virus from healthy persons is rare. Only 13 confirmed cases of secondary transmission from 11 immunocompetent vaccine recipients have been reported. We report the confirmed case of extensive neonatal varicella disease in a neonate after exposure to a vaccine varicella rash that developed after maternal postpartum vaccination.

Wellness Curriculum in the Pediatric Clerkship.

Psychological distress leading to burnout is an important issue during medical school. While studies have researched interventions in the pre-clerkship years, very few have targeted the clerkship years. To improve the wellness of third year medical students, the following interventions were implemented: (1) prompted students to identify two wellness goals in the areas of personal and physical well-being and (2) encouraged students to participate in meditation and chair yoga sessions during their pediatrics clerkship. Students completed pre- and post-clerkship wellness surveys. The interventions led to a small but significant improvement in the wellness of students, particularly in mental, physical, emotional, social, and spiritual well-being.Further expansion of a wellness curriculum to all clerkships during the entire third and fourth years may result in reduced burnout and sustained improvements in wellness during post graduate training and practice.

Multi-Specialty Boot Camp: Enhancing Student Confidence in Residency Preparation.

BACKGROUND: A "boot camp" or senior preparatory course can help to bridge the gap between knowledge and skills attained in required clerkships and residency expectations. An under-researched area is in interventions across specialties and with student confidence as the outcome. OBJECTIVE: A multi-specialty school-wide boot camp for 4th year medical students was evaluated with a curriculum that focused on specialty milestones and entrustable professional activities and the importance of student confidence as an outcome. METHODS: A school-wide "boot camp" was developed to help 4th year students become ready for their matched specialty. Faculty resources were pooled to teach students from multiple specialties' common milestone topics. Surveys were collected from 3 academic years (2014-2015 to 2016-2017): pre-boot camp (Pre), immediately post-boot camp (Post 1), and 3 months after starting residency (Post 2). Dependent t-tests were employed to determine pre-post differences. RESULTS: Over the 3-year study period, 185 students participated in boot camp, 162 (87.6%) completed the first 2 surveys, and 75 (40.5%) students provided data at all 3 points in time. With more robust findings between Pre and Post 1, students improved their confidence level in communicating with families and most specialty skills, and students felt more prepared to be an intern as a result of the boot camp. CONCLUSIONS: The robust increase in student confidence suggested that a multi-specialty, school-wide approach to a capstone curriculum should be considered by medical schools, which will not only benefit students but faculty as well. Future research should examine student competence in achieving specialty skills.

Community-acquired Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia among hospitalized children in Hawaii.

SUMMARY BACKGROUND: Invasive community acquired (CA) Staphylococcus aureus (SA) disease has been endemically observed in Hawaiian children. We wanted to evaluate the clinical, laboratory findings, and outcomes of methicillin-resistant SA (MRSA) and methicillin-susceptible SA (MSSA) associated pneumonia admissions. METHODS: We performed retrospective chart reviews of 38 culture proven SA pneumonia patients admitted to a pediatric tertiary medical center in Hawaii between January 1996 to December 2007. RESULTS: Twenty-six patients (68%) had MRSA and 12 patients (32%) had MSSA infection. The mean age of MRSA patients was 2.8 and 6.7 years for MSSA patients (P < 0.05). Pacific Islander and Native Hawaiian patients were affected disproportionately compared to non-Pacific Islander and Hawaiian groups (P < 0.0001). Demographic data, days of fever, tachypnea, hypoxia, and length of stay (LOS) were not significantly different between MRSA and MSSA infected patients. The mean LOS was 26.2 days (range 6-138 days); mean length of fever was 12.4 days. Seventy five percent (15 of 20) of patients who required intubation had MRSA. Twenty-one of the 29 (72%) total patients with pleural effusions had MRSA infection and all required chest tube placements. Two (5%) patients died; both had MRSA infection. CONCLUSIONS: Younger Pacific Islander/Native Hawaiian children were affected disproportionately and had MRSA infection more frequently. MRSA infected patients appeared to have severe disease with frequent chest tube placement, intubation, and fatality. Overall, both MRSA and MSSA pneumonia resulted in prolonged hospitalization, multiple complications, and significant healthcare costs.

Staphylococcus aureus osteomyelitis in Hawaii.

BACKGROUND: The clinical and laboratory findings and outcomes of methicillin-resistant (MRSA) and methicillin-susceptible (MSSA) Staphylococcus aureus osteomyelitis have not been studied in Hawaii. METHODS: Retrospective inpatient chart reviews of 62 culture-proven osteomyelitis patients between 1996 and 2007 were performed. RESULTS: Fifteen patients (24%) had MRSA infection, and 47 patients (76%) had MSSA infection. Length of stay, chronic health problems, total duration of fever, and length of treatment were not significantly different between MRSA- and MSSA-infected patients. The peak erythrocyte sedimentation rate and C-reactive protein values were higher among MRSA infected patients (P values: .009 and .003, respectively).The systemic complication rate was higher in MRSA-infected patients (P value: .018). CONCLUSIONS: Differing from other pediatric staphylococcal infections in Hawaii, the majority of the patients had MSSA infection. Pacific Islander and Native Hawaiian ethnicities were affected disproportionately and had MRSA infection more frequently. MRSA-infected patients had frequent surgical procedures and systemic complications.