Prolongated Activated Partial Thromboplastin Time (aPTT) in Pediatric Patients before Surgery-Crying Wolf: Lupus (Anticoagulant) Does Not Always Threaten Children.

A prolonged preoperatory aPTT in children is often the cause of a delay of scheduled surgeries and the repetition of multiple blood tests, with the consequent wasting of resources and significant discomfort for children and parents. The aim of this review is to analyze the situations in which an isolated prolongation of aPTT is found during preoperative evaluation in children, especially when it is due to the presence of antiphospholipid antibodies, providing the readers with the keys to interpret this situation and the possibility to correctly evaluate the hemorrhagic risk of a patient.

Successful Multidisciplinary Management of Aortic Valve Repair in Severe Hemophilia B with Extended Half-Life Recombinant Factor IX Concentrate.

Successful management of surgery in severe coagulation disorders depends on adequate replacement of the deficient factors from intervention until wound healing. Extended half-life (EHL) recombinant factor IX (rFIX) has been increasingly used in hemophilia B (HB) patients. Monitoring of blood levels of EHL rFIX allows to obtain pharmacokinetic (PK) parameters in order to optimize and personalize therapeutic scheme. We describe a case of a young male with severe HB who successfully underwent aortic valve repair. This is the first reported open-heart surgery in a patient with severe HB using EHL rFIX. The success was based on accurate PK evaluation and on meticulous preoperative planning and close cooperation among surgeons, hemophilia specialists, and laboratory team despite the long distance between hemophilia center and surgical clinic.

Recommendations for the use of long-term central venous catheter (CVC) in children with hemato-oncological disorders: management of CVC-related occlusion and CVC-related thrombosis. On behalf of the coagulation defects working group and the supportive therapy working group of the Italian Association of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology (AIEOP).

Central venous catheters (CVC), used for the management of children with hemato-oncological disorders, are burdened by a significant incidence of mechanical, infective, or thrombotic complications. These complications favor an increasing risk in prolongation of hospitalization, extra costs of care, and sometimes severe life-threatening events. No guidelines for the management of CVC-related occlusion and CVC-related thrombosis are available for children. To this aim, members of the coagulation defects working group and the supportive therapy working group of the Italian Association of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology (AIEOP) reviewed the pediatric and adult literature to propose the first recommendations for the management of CVC-related occlusion and CVC-related thrombosis in children with hemato-oncological disorders.

Mycophenolate mofetil and Sirolimus as second or further line treatment in children with chronic refractory Primitive or Secondary Autoimmune Cytopenias: a single centre experience.

The management of refractory autoimmune cytopenias in childhood is challenging due to the lack of established evidence on escalating treatments. The long-term efficacy of immunosuppressive drugs was evaluated in children with refractory autoimmune cytopenias referred to the Haematology Unit of the Gaslini Children's Hospital between 2001 and 2014. Patients were grouped into three categories: autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome (ALPS), ALPS-related syndrome (at least one absolute/primary additional criterion for ALPS) and primary autoimmune cytopenia (PAC, cytopenia with no other immunological symptoms/signs). Fifty-eight children (aged 1-16 years) entered the study: 12 were categorized with ALPS, 24 were ALPS-related and 22 had PAC. Five didn't receive treatment. Fifty-three were initially treated with steroids/intravenous immunoglobulin. Fourteen responded, whereas 39 did not. Of these 39 patients, 34 (87%) received mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) as second/further-line treatment and 22 (65%) responded. Within these 34 subjects, ALPS patients responded better (11/11, 100%) than the two other groups pooled together (11/23, 48%; P = 0·002). Sirolimus was given as second/further-line treatment to 16 children, and 12 (75%) responded, including 8 who previously failed MMF therapy. Median follow-up was 3·46 years. MMF and Sirolimus were well-tolerated and enabled partial/complete and sustained remission in most children. These drugs may be successfully and safely used in children with refractory autoimmune cytopenias with or without ALPS/ALPS-related disorders and may represent a valid second/further line option.

A practical approach to the use of low molecular weight heparins in VTE treatment and prophylaxis in children and newborns.

Low-molecular weight heparins are currently the most commonly used anticoagulants in children and newborns. However, since thrombotic complications rarely occur outside large children's hospitals, physicians often encounter some practical problems in managing these treatments when a pediatric thrombosis specialist is not available. The drug of choice is enoxaparin, due to its favorable FXa/FIIa ratio and the availability of pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic data. The treatment of acute thrombosis should be started with two daily injections but when compliance is an issue, a single daily administration schedule could be chosen for secondary prophylaxis ensuring careful measurement of the post 24-hour anti-FXa activity. Furthermore, a subcutaneous device may be a useful tool and a topical dermal anesthetic could be effective in controlling pain without affecting anti-FXa levels. In neonate and toddlers, where mini doses are frequently needed, the dead space of syringes and needles could represent an issue and therefore the use of insulin syringes without dead space is advisable, while a dilution of the drug is useful with other syringes. This article derives from a nonsystematic review of the available literature, with special attention to recent international guidelines and expert recommendations, combined to authors' clinical practice in large tertiary pediatric hospitals and will provide concise and practical information for the use of low-molecular weight heparin in childhood and infancy in a sort of "answering frequently asked questions."

Successful urgent neurosugery management with rFVIIa mega doses in a child with haemophilia A and high titre inhibitor.

We report an urgent aggressive neurosurgery procedure for a large life-threatening intracranial bleed in a 3-year-old boy with severe haemophilia A and high titre inhibitor, managed with mega doses of recombinant-activated FVII (rFVIIa). We infused preoperatively bolus of 350 µg/kg, repeated every 2 h for 4 days. There were no bleeding complications during surgery. Afterward, rFVIIa was gradually tapered acting alternatively on dose and timing, until the ongoing schedule of 214 µg/kg every 12 h.To our knowledge this is the first report of aggressive neurosurgery in a boy with high titre inhibitor, successfully managed with high doses rFVIIa.The close and prompt collaboration between haematologist, neurosurgeon, and anaesthesiologist was successful in managing the critical haemorrhage without major sequelae and eradicating the inhibitor, at a cost of about 1.500.000 Euros. There is an urgent need for availability of standardized global assay to monitor the rFVIIa treatment, which could contribute to constrain these prohibitive costs.

Sirolimus as maintenance treatment in an infant with life-threatening multiresistant pure red cell anemia/autoimmune hemolytic anemia.

A 9-month-old boy with life-threatening multiresistant pure red cell anemia/autoimmune hemolytic anemia within the frame of a possible, undiagnosed immune-mediated disease was initially treated with prednisone. Further-line therapies of the following 7 relapses included immunoglobulins, rituximab, cyclophosphamide, and alentuzumab followed by other maintenance treatments as cyclosporine, methotrexate, and mycophenolate. After all the administered therapies failed, the patient was successfully treated by splenectomy followed by fludarabine and then sirolimus as maintenance treatment. Relapses might have been caused by the lack of a complete debulking of triggering cells and/or ineffective maintenance therapy. Splenectomy and sirolimus may have played a complementary role in the management of both situations.

Rituximab-based immunosuppression for autoimmune haemolytic anaemia in infants.

We report a case series of four infants with severe autoimmune haemolytic anaemia (AIHA) who responded to treatment with rituximab and cyclosporine after having failed first line therapy with high-dose steroid (prednisolone 4-8 mg/kg/d). Rituximab was started at 11-90 d from onset due to continued haemolysis; three infants also received cyclosporine A. Three of four infants reached complete response, defined as normal haemoglobin, reticulocytes and negative indices of haemolysis, at 7-21 months from diagnosis. In long-term follow-up two infants remained disease-free with normal immunology, one had undefined immunodeficiency and one had autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome.

Immunization after the elective end of antineoplastic chemotherapy in children.

The aim of the present commentary is to discuss the multifaceted topic of vaccinations after treatment for cancer in the pediatric age. Publications in this field reveal conflicting data and opinions; no evidence-based guidelines currently exist. However, in spite of several discrepancies some commonly accepted information and conclusions exist. Efforts to find a common strategy of re-immunization should be directed towards setting up prospective studies on sufficient numbers of patients to obtain statistically relevant end points.

Unrelated hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for Cernunnos-XLF deficiency.

Cernunnos-XLF deficiency is a rare CI characterized by a defective DNA DSB repair mechanism. Its clinical manifestations are growth retardation, dysmorphic features, malformations, and severe B- and T-cell lymphopenia. BM failure may complicate the clinical picture. To date, there have been no described patients with CSy undergoing allogeneic HSCT. We report a case of CSy treated successfully with unrelated allogeneic HSCT after a reduced-intensity conditioning regimen. Two yr after HSCT, the patient maintains full donor engraftment, normal hematopoiesis, and progressively improving immune competence, thus suggesting that HSCT may be the treatment of choice for CSy.