Allergic rhinitis and associated factors in schoolchildren from Bogota, Colombia.

BACKGROUND: Allergic rhinitis is one of the most frequent chronic diseases among children. The objective of the study was to assess the prevalence of and the factors associated with self-reported allergic rhinitis symptoms in schoolchildren from Bogota, Colombia. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL: We followed the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) methodology. Our sample included 3,256 children aged 6 - 7 and 3,830 adolescents aged 13 - 14 years. RESULTS: The prevalence of self-reported allergic rhinitis symptoms was 30.8% among children and 36.6% among adolescents. Factors associated with self-reported allergic rhinitis among children included current asthma and atopic dermatitis symptoms; use of acetaminophen in the first year of life and in the last 12 months; antibiotic use in the first year of life; high- school and university maternal education; smokers at home; and caesarean delivery. Among adolescents, associated factors included current asthma and atopic dermatitis symptoms; current acetaminophen use once per month; frequent fast-food consumption; cat exposure at home; and smoking. CONCLUSION: Further exploration of factors associated with allergic rhinitis symptoms is needed.

Usefulness of Chromogenic CromoCen® AGN agar medium for the identification of the genus Aeromonas: Assessment of faecal samples.

Selective screening media for the detection and identification of Aeromonas strains are needed to guide primary isolation procedures in the clinical laboratory. This study compared the selective CromoCen® AGN chromogenic agar medium for the detection and identification of Aeromonas strains that were isolated from various samples against the conventional selective agar media that are commonly used for the isolation of this organism in food, environmental and clinical samples. The Miles and Misra and ecometric methods were used to evaluate the microbiological performance of CromoCen® AGN chromogenic agar medium, which was shown to be satisfactory. A total of 14 reference Aeromonas strains, 44 wild strains and 106 clinical stool specimens were examined using both non-chromogenic selective agars that are commonly used for Aeromonas isolation and CromoCen® AGN agar. The latter exhibited 94.73% sensitivity and 100% specificity for the various samples. On CromoCen® AGN agar medium, Aeromonas formed colonies with light green, greenish and salmon pigments with or without a surrounding wide transparent zone (halo) of 2-3mm in diameter around the entire border. This medium is recommended for the isolation and potential identification of the Aeromonas genus.

[Factors associated with complications caused by bronchoscopy in pediatric patients]. / Factores asociados a complicaciones debidas a la realización de broncoscopia en pacientes pediátricos.

BACKGROUND: Although the role of flexible bronchoscopy as an important diagnostic and therapeutic tool in pediatric medicine has been demonstrated, the procedure can cause complications which should be foreseen by the bronchoscopist. However, no precise information is available about the factors associated with the presence of such complications. OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence of complications caused by bronchoscopy in pediatric patients and the factors associated with their presence. MATERIAL AND METHOD: This was a retrospective cohort study which reviewed the records of patients aged between 1 month and 18 years who had undergone bronchoscopy between January 1 and December 31, 2002. The presence or absence of several variables considered predictive of postbronchoscopy complications was recorded in each patient. RESULTS: After adjustment for the method used to access the airway, age less than or equal to 3 months was the only independent factor associated with the presence of complications (odds ratio = 8.19; 95% confidence interval, 1.61-41.55; P=.01). CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that patients 3 months old or younger are at greater risk of presenting complications after bronchoscopies performed under general anesthesia. Consequently a risk-benefit analysis should be carried out for patients in this age group, and the possibility of performing the procedure under sedation should be considered.