Rotavirus gastroenteritis hospitalizations in provinces with different vaccination coverage rates in Spain, 2013-2018.

BACKGROUND: Rotavirus (RV) vaccines are available in Spain since 2006 but are not included in the National Immunization Program. RV vaccination has reached an intermediate vaccination coverage rate (VCR) but with substantial differences between provinces. The aim of this study was to assess the ratio of RV gastroenteritis (RVGE) admissions to all-cause hospitalizations in children under 5 years of age in areas with different VCR. METHODS: Observational, multicenter, cross-sectional, medical record-based study. All children admitted to the study hospitals with a RVGE confirmed diagnosis during a 5-year period were selected. The annual ratio of RVGE to the total number of all-cause hospitalizations in children < 5 years of age were calculated. The proportion of RVGE hospitalizations were compared in areas with low (< 30%), intermediate (31-59%) and high (> 60%) VCR. RESULTS: From June 2013 to May 2018, data from 1731 RVGE hospitalizations (16.47% of which were nosocomial) were collected from the 12 study hospitals. RVGE hospital admissions accounted for 2.82% (95 CI 2.72-3.00) and 43.84% (95% CI 40.53-47.21) of all-cause and Acute Gastroenteritis (AGE) hospitalizations in children under 5 years of age, respectively. The likelihood of hospitalization due to RVGE was 56% (IC95%, 51-61%) and 27% (IC95%, 18-35%) lower in areas with high and intermediate VCR, respectively, compared to the low VCR areas. CONCLUSIONS: RVGE hospitalization ratios are highly dependent on the RV VCR. Increasing VCR in areas with intermediate and low coverage rates would significantly reduce the severe burden of RVGE that requires hospital management in Spain. Clinical trial registration Not applicable.

[Psychomotor development in patients with severe congenital heart disease]. / Desarrollo psicomotor en pacientes con cardiopatia congenita grave.

AIM: Retrospective analysis of the neurodevelopment in the first two years of life in patients with severe congenital heart disease. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Out of 89 patients with severe congenital heart disease 19 were excluded due to a history of prematurity and/or chromosomopathy, four due to a history of ischemic stroke and two due to lack of medical history. Denver Test (DT) results at 2, 6, 12, 15 and 18 months, and results in motor, language and social interaction fields were achieved. RESULTS: 59.4% were male and 40.6% female. The mean age of patients undergoing extracorporeal membrane oxygenation with pathological DT at 18 months was 3 months, compared to 11.88 months in those with normal DT. DT at 2 months was normal in 98.4% of patients, 87.5% at 6 and 12 months, 81.3% at 15 months and 85% at 18 months. Two patients with abnormal neurodevelopment normalized the DT before 24 months. The field of neurodevelopment most affected was language (15.6%), followed by motor (10.9%) and social interaction (8%). CONCLUSIONS: Psychomotor development delay, especially in the area of language, is more frequent in patients with severe congenital heart disease. The presence of cyanosis and the need for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation were the variables that are most associated with this type of pathology.

TITLE: Desarrollo psicomotor en pacientes con cardiopatia congenita grave.Objetivo. Analizar los hitos motores alcanzados en los dos primeros años de vida en pacientes con cardiopatia congenita grave. Pacientes y metodos. De 89 pacientes con cardiopatia congenita grave, 19 fueron excluidos por antecedentes de prematuridad o cromosomopatia, cuatro por antecedente de ictus isquemico y dos por ausencia de historia clinica. Se obtuvieron resultados del test de Denver (TD) a los 2, 6, 12, 15 y 18 meses, y resultados en los campos motor, del lenguaje y de interaccion social. Resultados. El 59,4% fueron varones, y el 40,6%, mujeres. La edad media de los pacientes sometidos a oxigenacion con membrana extracorporea con TD patologico a los 18 meses fue de 3 meses, frente a 11,88 meses de los que presentaban un TD normal. El TD a los 2 meses resulto normal en el 98,4% de los pacientes, en el 87,5% a los 6 y 12 meses, en el 81,3% a los 15 meses, y en el 85% a los 18 meses. Dos de los pacientes con alteracion en el neurodesarrollo normalizaron el TD antes de los 24 meses. El campo del neurodesarrollo mas afectado fue el del lenguaje (15,6%), seguido del motor (10,9%) y de la interaccion social (8%). Conclusiones. El retraso en el desarrollo psicomotor, especialmente en el area del lenguaje, es mas frecuente en pacientes con cardiopatias congenitas graves, y la presencia de cianosis y la necesidad de circulacion con membrana extracorporea son las variables que mas se asocian con este tipo de patologia.

[Diagnostic test in emergency departments for bacterial infections in infants younger than 12 months]. / Orientación diagnóstica en la unidad de urgencias en lactantes menores de 12 meses con infección bacteriana.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate clinical and analytic numeric data that may help the emergency departments to identify bacterial infections in infants. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective study of 430 infants with bacterial growth in cultures (culture from blood, 30; urine, 207; stools, 193, and/or cerebrospinal fluid, n 25) was performed. These patients were compared with a control group (n 430), randomly selected from patients aged less than 12 months with negative cultures who were hospitalized with suspected infection. Neonates and surgical patients were excluded from both groups. Statistical analysis was performed using Student's t-test for independent samples, Levene's test for the study of equality of variances, bivariate correlation and one-factor ANOVA, and receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curves and odds ratios were calculated when statistically significant (p < 0.05) results were obtained. These analyses were performed using the SPSS 10.0 statistical software package. RESULTS: Of the infants admitted to the pediatric unit, 11.7 % had at least one positive bacterial culture. Temperature (p 0.005), leucocyte count (p 0.003), percentage of neutrophils (p < 0.0001) and C-reactive protein (p < 0.0001) were significantly higher in infants with positive cultures. In invasive infections significant differences were found in sex (more frequent in males) (p 0.03), heart rate (p < 0.0001) and respiratory rate (p 0.003). In the ROC curves, the best diagnostic yield was obtained for C-reactive protein (0.93 for a cutoff value of 29 mg/l, 86 % specificity and 91 % sensitivity). CONCLUSION: C-reactive protein is essential for diagnosis of bacterial infection in infants in the emergency department.

[Arteriovenous malformations of the vein of Galen]. / Malformación arteriovenosa de la vena de Galeno.

Vein of Galen arteriovenous malformations encompass a diverse group of vascular anomalies that share a common feature: dilatation of the vein of Galen. Although clinical presentations are highly variable, depending on age of presentation, signs and symptoms overlap between age groups. The association of heart failure and cranial bruit constitutes the most striking clinical presentation in neonates. However, less severe and fulminant modes of presentation are frequent in older infants, children, and adults. Treatment approaches consist of symptomatic treatment of heart failure on the one hand and of surgery or endovascular treatment on the other. The results of the latter have improved in recent years, opening up a broad spectrum of new possibilities. We present the case of an asymptomatic 15-day-old neonate who presented an arteriovenous malformation of the vein of Galen and who was treated with endovascular occlusion of the arterial afferents. An excellent result was obtained with no evidence of neurological abnormalities.

[Clinical guidelines for the prevention of infective endocarditis]. / Guía clínica para la prevención de la endocarditis infecciosa.

This article sets out the recommendations for the prevention of infective endocarditis (IE), contained in the guidelines developed by the American Heart Association (AHA) and the European Society of Cardiology (ESC), from which the recommendations of the Spanish Society of Paediatric Cardiology and Congenital Heart Disease have been agreed. In recent years, there has been a considerable change in the recommendations for the prevention of IE, mainly due to the lack of evidence on the effectiveness of antibiotic prophylaxis in prevention, and the risk of the development of antibiotic resistance. The main change is a reduction of the indications for antibiotic prophylaxis, both in terms of patients and procedures considered at risk. Clinical practice guidelines and recommendations should assist health professionals in making clinical decisions in their daily practice. However, the ultimate judgment regarding the care of a particular patient must be taken by the physician responsible.

[Fetal bradycardia: a retrospective study in 9 Spanish centers]. / Bradicardia fetal: estudio multicéntrico retrospectivo en 9 hospitales españoles.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to review the current management and outcomes of fetal bradycardia in 9 Spanish centers. METHODS: Retrospective multicenter study: analysis of all fetuses with bradycardia diagnosed between January 2008 and September 2010. Underlying mechanisms of fetal bradyarrhythmias were studied with echocardiography. RESULTS: A total of 37 cases were registered: 3 sinus bradycardia, 15 blocked atrial bigeminy, and 19 high grade atrioventricular blocks. Sinus bradycardia: 3 cases (100%) were associated with serious diseases. Blocked atrial bigeminy had an excellent outcome, except for one case with post-natal tachyarrhythmia. Of the atrioventricular blocks, 16% were related to congenital heart defects with isomerism, 63% related to the presence of maternal SSA/Ro antibodies, and 21% had unclear etiology. Overall mortality was 20% (37%, if terminations of pregnancy are taken into account). Risk factors for mortality were congenital heart disease, hydrops and/or ventricular dysfunction. Management strategies differed among centers. Steroids were administrated in 73% of immune-mediated atrioventricular blocks, including the only immune-mediated IInd grade block. More than half (58%) of atrioventricular blocks had a pacemaker implanted in a follow-up of 18 months. CONCLUSIONS: Sustained fetal bradycardia requires a comprehensive study in all cases, including those with sinus bradycardia. Blocked atrial bigeminy has a good prognosis, but tachyarrhythmias may develop. Heart block has significant mortality and morbidity rates, and its management is still highly controversial.

[Neonatal cholestasis associated with liver failure as a clinical manifestation of cystic fibrosis]. / Colestasis del lactante con fallo hepático asociado como forma de presentación de la fibrosis quística.

Cystic Fibrosis is the most frequent hereditary disease in Caucasians. Its clinical presentation may be very variable. Neonatal cholestasis is a typical but rare primary clinical manifestation that usually occurs in the first 3 weeks of life. It is often associated with meconium ileus. We present the case of an infant with cystic fibrosis whose primary clinical manifestation was cholestasis and liver failure at the age of 6 weeks.

[Chromosome aberrations in malformed newborns]. / Cromosomopatías en recién nacidos malformados.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of chromosome abnormalities in malformed newborn infants and to analyze the distribution of the types of anomalies, and the variation in their frequency with maternal age. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We used the data collected according to the Spanish Collaborative Study of Congenital Malformations (ECEMC) methodology from March 1982 -September 1996. Of 33,562 newborns (live and stillborn), 1,409(4.1%) malformed infants were identified. A total of 332 karyotypes were performed in peripheral blood, representing 23.5% of the newborns with congenital defects. Results The frequency at birth of chromosome abnormalities was 5.4% of malformed newborns. There were 59 infants with Down's syndrome, 6 with trisomy 18, 3 with Turner's syndrome, 2 with trisomy 13, 2 with "Triple X", 1 tetraploidy, 1 triploidy, 1 trisomy 9 p, and 1 infant with a complex XXY mosaicism. The prevalence of Down's syndrome in the general population is 0.17%. The mean age of mothers with Down's syndrome infants was 34.2 years and paternal age was 36 years, and a non-statistically significant diminishing trend in mean maternal age was observed during the course of the study. The prevalence of Down's syndrome was higher in mothers aged more than 35 years. A non-statistically significant increase of the prevalence of Down's syndrome in newborns with mothers aged between 31 and 34 years was observed with time. The mean number of previous pregnancies was 2.81. Among a total of 49 mothers and fathers, two chromosome alterations were found. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of chromosome abnormalities in newborns with birth defects was 5.4%. The frequency of Down's syndrome was higher. Down's syndrome was more prevalent in mothers aged more than 35 years. The mean maternal age of Down's syndrome infants gradually diminished, and accumulated between the ages of 31 and 34 years.

[Ruptured aneurysm of the sinus of Valsalva in a boy with ventricular septal defect]. / Rotura de aneurisma del seno de Valsalva en un niño con comunicación interventricular.

Aneurysmal dilatation of the sinus of Valsalva is a rare structural cardiac abnormality in children. It appears to be more common in Asia. It may be clinically silent for many years but these defects frequently coexist with other cardiac malformations, causing, when rupture occurs, unexpected symptoms that are not explained by the original defects. We report a case of ruptured aneurysm of the sinus of Valsalva in a 12-year-old boy diagnosed with ventricular septal defect in the neonatal period with an uneventful course. The boy suddenly developed acute prechordal pain, symptoms of low heart output and systolic-diastolic murmur. The diagnosis of ruptured aneurysm of the sinus of Valsalva was based on echocardiography. Surgical treatment was required to close the ventricular septal defect and repair the aorta, without valvular replacement. The postoperative course was uneventful. We conclude that is extremely important to have a degree high suspicion of this entity in previously asymptomatic children, with or without cardiac anomalies, who suddenly present this kind of heart failure and abrupt changes in cardiac auscultation.

[Mid-term results of percutaneous closure of atrial septal defect in children]. / Resultados a medio plazo del cierre percutáneo de la comunicación interauricular en niños.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the medium-term results of percutaneous closure of atrial septal defect. METHODS: Twenty-two children (mean weight, 23 11kg; mean age, 5.7 2.4 years) underwent percutaneous atrial septal defect closure under general anesthesia. The procedure was monitored by transesophageal echocardiography. DAS-Angel Wings (n4) and the Amplatzer device (n18) were used. RESULTS: Mean pulmonary artery pressure was 13 2.8mmHg, mean pulmonary vascular resistance was 1.50.5U/m2 and mean Qp/Qs flow ratio was 2.2 0.6. The mean diameter of the defects was 14.5 6.3mm by transesophageal echocardiography OmniPlane measurement and 15.95.3mm using balloon occlusion reference. A total of 31 devices were used: 4 Angel Wings and 27Amplatzer devices. Twelve Amplatzer devices were withdrawn through the introducer without complications, 5 due to a discrepancy in the size of the left auricle, 4 because they were too small to stabilize in the septum and 3 due to defective opening in the left auricle. In 19 patients implantation was successful. In 17 patients transthoracic color Doppler echocardiography carried out 24 hours after the procedure showed a minimal shunt which was no longer present 1 month later. The mean time of discharge was 38 12 hours after the procedure. After a mean follow up 15 6 months the patients remain asymptomatic with no clinical or technical problems. CONCLUSION: The success rate of percutaneous closure of atrial septal defects in well-selected patients was high and presented no complications.