Bloodstream infections in pediatric ECLS: usefulness of daily blood culture monitoring and predictive value of biological markers. The British Columbia experience.

INTRODUCTION: The incidence of bloodstream infection (BSI) in extracorporeal life support (ECLS) is reported between 0.9 and 19.5%. In January 2006, the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO) reported an overall incidence of 8.78% distributed as follows: respiratory: 6.5% (neonatal), 20.8% (pediatric); cardiac: 8.2% (neonatal) and 12.6% (pediatric). METHOD: At BC Children's Hospital (BCCH) daily surveillance blood cultures (BC) are performed and antibiotic prophylaxis is not routinely recommended. Positive BC (BC+) were reviewed, including resistance profiles, collection time of BC+, time to positivity and mortality. White blood cell count, absolute neutrophile count, immature/total ratio, platelet count, fibrinogen and lactate were analyzed 48, 24 and 0 h prior to BSI. A univariate linear regression analysis was performed. RESULTS: From 1999 to 2005, 89 patients underwent ECLS. After exclusion, 84 patients were reviewed. The attack rate was 22.6% (19 BSI) and 13.1% after exclusion of coagulase-negative staphylococci (n = 8). BSI patients were significantly longer on ECLS (157 h) compared to the no-BSI group (127 h, 95% CI: 106-148). Six BSI patients died on ECLS (35%; 4 congenital diaphragmatic hernias, 1 hypoplastic left heart syndrome and 1 after a tetralogy repair). BCCH survival on ECLS was 71 and 58% at discharge, which is comparable to previous reports. No patient died primarily because of BSI. No BSI predictor was identified, although lactate may show a decreasing trend before BSI (P = 0.102). CONCLUSION: Compared with ELSO, the studied BSI incidence was higher with a comparable mortality. We speculate that our BSI rate is explained by underreporting of "contaminants" in the literature, the use of broad-spectrum antibiotic prophylaxis and a higher yield with daily monitoring BC. We support daily surveillance blood cultures as an alternative to antibiotic prophylaxis in the management of patients on ECLS.

Iatrogenic hyponatremia in hospitalized children: Can it be avoided?

Iatrogenic hyponatremia in hospitalized children is a common problem. It is usually caused by the administration of free water, either orally or through the prescription of hypotonic intravenous fluids. It can result in cerebral edema and death, and is most commonly reported in healthy children undergoing minor surgery. The current teachings and practical guidelines for maintenance fluid infusions are based on caloric expenditure data in healthy children that were derived and published more than 50 years ago. A re-evaluation of these data and more recent recognition that hospitalized children are vulnerable to hyponatremia, with its resulting morbidity and mortality rates, suggest that changes in paediatricians' approach to fluid administration are necessary. There is no single fluid therapy that is optimal for all hospitalized children. A thorough assessment of the type of fluid, volume of fluid and electrolyte requirements based on individual patient requirements, plus rigorous monitoring, is required in any child receiving intravenous fluids. The present article reviews how hyponatremia occurs and makes recommendations for minimizing the risk of iatrogenic hyponatremia.