Small Bowel Bacterial Overgrowth in Children.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of study was to perform a comprehensive review of the pathogenesis, available diagnostic procedures, prevalence, clinical manifestations, and consequences of small bowel bacterial overgrowth (SBBO) as well as treatment options in the pediatric population. METHODS: A literature search including MEDLINE, PubMed, and Web of Science databases was performed. RESULTS: SBBO is found in a variety of childhood conditions in which the normal homeostatic mechanisms restricting bacterial colonization in the small bowel are disturbed by congenital or acquired anatomical abnormalities, diminished gastric acid secretion, congenital alteration of intestinal motility or acquired small bowel diseases, or other chronic disorders including primary or acquired immunodeficiency. Data show that SBBO may be an underrecognized cause of pediatric morbidity. Although several diagnostic tests for SBBO determination are available, each has its drawbacks and limitations. Indeed, there is still no "criterion standard" for SBBO diagnosis in the pediatric population. Owing to lack of established guidelines and few published interventional studies that assess the effectiveness of SBBO therapy, treatment of children with SBBO remains empiric and comprises antibiotic or probiotic therapy. CONCLUSIONS: Further research is needed to determine the clinical impact of SBBO and to establish diagnostic and therapeutic guidelines applicable to children.

Serotype-Specific Pneumococcal Status prior to PCV 13 Administration in Children and Adolescents with Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the serotype-specific pneumococcal status of children and adolescents with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) who were naïve to pneumococcal vaccination before administering the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV 13). This was an open, prospective study on children and adolescents aged 5-18 years who had IBD and were naïve to pneumococcal vaccination. A single dose of PCV 13 was administered to each patient. The geometric mean concentrations (GMCs) were measured for all 13 serotypes. A total of 122 subjects completed the study. Prevaccination GMCs ranged from 0.55 µg/ml (serotype 4) to 4.26 µg/mI (serotype 19A). Prior to the administration of PCV 13, high GMCs were detected in older children and adolescents who had IBD and were naïve to pneumococcal vaccination.

Small Bowel Bacterial Overgrowth Associated with Persistence of Abdominal Symptoms in Children Treated with a Proton Pump Inhibitor.

Small bowel bacterial overgrowth (SBBO) was diagnosed in 22.5% of 40 children treated for 3 months with a proton pump inhibitor (PPI). Compared with those without SBBO, children with SBBO had higher frequency of abdominal pain, bloating, eructation, and flatulence. Patients with gastrointestinal symptoms after PPI treatment should be evaluated for SBBO rather than empirically prolonging PPI therapy.

Long-term proton pump inhibitor therapy leads to small bowel bacterial overgrowth as determined by breath hydrogen and methane excretion.

OBJECTIVES: Prolonged suppression of gastric acid secretion by proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) may alter the bacterial microbiota of the upper gastrointestinal tract and lead to small bowel bacterial overgrowth (SBBO). Published reports have shown conflicting results on the association between PPI therapy and risk of SBBO development. We evaluated whether long-term PPI treatment is associated with presence of SBBO as determined by breath hydrogen (H2) and methane (CH4) excretion. We also assessed the differences in H2/CH4 excretion patterns in patients taking PPI compared with those not taking the medication and searched for the potential predictors of a positive breath test result. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This was a prospective cohort study that included 67 PPI-treated patients (PPIT) and 62 not-receiving PPI (C, comparison). PPIT and C underwent a glucose H2/CH4 breath test (HMBT) to determine the presence of SBBO. RESULTS: The prevalence of SBBO was significantly higher in PPIT compared to C (44.8% versus 21%, p = 0.005, OR = 3.06, 95% CI 1.40-6.66) as determined by H2 and CH4 excretion. We found that PPIT had all H2 test parameters (baseline H2 levels, maximum peak of H2 as well as mean H2 through the whole test) significantly higher than C. Even those PPIT who did not meet the criteria of breath test positivity had statistically higher breath H2 levels compared to C. Although we did not observe significant differences in CH4 excretion between groups, 19.4% of PPIT and 12.9% of C would have had a false-negative HMBT results had CH4 not been taken into account. CONCLUSIONS: Long-term PPI use was found to be significantly associated with SBBO development as determined by breath H2 and CH4 excretion. CH4 determination reduces the number of falsely negative test results.

Immunogenicity of 13-Valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine in Pediatric Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

BACKGROUND: There are only a few studies on immune response to pneumococcal vaccines in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD); all of them assessed polysaccharide vaccines only. The aim of the study was to evaluate the immunogenicity and safety of 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) in IBD pediatric patients compared with healthy controls. METHODS: This was a multicenter, prospective, and controlled study on children and adolescents aged 5 to 18 years with IBD with no history of pneumococcal immunization. The subjects for the study belonged to one of the following groups: patients with IBD on no immunosuppressive therapy (group A), those on tumor necrosis factor agents or immunomodulators (group B), and healthy controls (group C). The study population received 1 intramuscular injection of PCV13. The primary outcome measure was adequate vaccine response defined as postvaccination titer ≥0.35 µg/mL to all 13 serotypes. Geometric mean titers and geometric mean titer rises were measured for all serotypes. The evidence of local and systemic adverse effects for 5 days after the vaccine was registered. RESULTS: A total of 178 subjects (122 patients and 56 controls) completed the study course. There was no significant difference in the rate of adequate vaccine response between patients with IBD and controls measured 4 to 8 weeks after vaccination (90.4% versus 96.5%, P = 0.5281). Children in group A had higher geometric mean titer rises than children in group B (P = 0.0369). There were no serious adverse events related to PCV13 during the study. CONCLUSIONS: PCV13 is both immunogenic and safe in pediatric patients with IBD.

[Coexistence of Crohn disease and Wegener granulomatosis in a 15-year-old patient]. / Wspolwystepowanie choroby lesniowskiego-Crohna z Ziarniniakiem Wegenera U 15-letniej pacjentki.

Crohn disease is being diagnosed more and more frequently in children and teenagers. Clinical symptoms are mainly related to the gastrointestinal tract, however there are many reports in the literature about the coexistence of Crohn disease with other autoimmunological disorders such as celiac disease, autoimmune hypothyroidism, systemic lupus erythematosus and Wegener granulomatosis. We report a 15-year-old patient with Crohn disease who also developed Wegener granulomatosis. The presented case illustrates the difficulties in establishing the diagnosis when symptoms of the original disease are superimposed on symptoms of a different disorder.