Talaromyces Marneffei Infection in an HIV-Negative Child with a CARD9 Mutation in China: A Case Report and Review of the Literature.

BACKGROUND: Talaromyces marneffei (T. marneffei) is a thermally dimorphic fungus causing systemic mycosis. Due to the atypical symptoms and diverse imaging findings, T. marneffei-infected patients may be misdiagnosed thus preventing timely antifungal therapy. Moreover, HIV-negative patients with T. marneffei infection may be congenitally immunocompromised because of the mutation of immune-related genes. CASE PRESENTATION: We describe a case of an HIV-negative child who developed disseminated T. marneffei infection in a nonendemic area. Chest CT showed similar imaging changes of miliary pulmonary tuberculosis, while there was no other evidence of tuberculosis infection, and empirical antituberculosis treatment was not effective. Lymphocyte subset analysis showed reduced natural killer cells, and the immunoglobulin profile showed low levels of IgM, C3 and C4. A bone marrow smear revealed T. marneffei infection, and ascites culture also proved T. marneffei infection. Despite antifungal treatment, the child died of multiple organ failure. Two gene mutations in caspase recruitment domain-containing protein 9 (CARD9) were detected, which had not been reported previously in T. marneffei-infected patients. CONCLUSIONS: HIV-negative patients with CARD9 mutations may be potential hosts of T. marneffei. Abnormalities in the immunoglobin profile and lymphocyte subset may provide clues for immunocompromised patients, and further genetic testing is advised to identify gene mutations in HIV-negative patients with T. marneffei infection.

Relationship between admission coagulopathy and prognosis in children with traumatic brain injury: a retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: Coagulopathy in adult patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) is strongly associated with unfavorable outcomes. However, few reports focus on pediatric TBI-associated coagulopathy. METHODS: We retrospectively identified children with Glasgow Coma Scale ≤ 13 in a tertiary pediatric hospital from April 2012 to December 2019 to evaluate the impact of admission coagulopathy on their prognosis. A classification and regression tree (CART) analysis using coagulation parameters was performed to stratify the death risk among patients. The importance of these parameters was examined by multivariate logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: A total of 281 children with moderate to severe TBI were enrolled. A receiver operating characteristic curve showed that activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) and fibrinogen were effective predictors of in-hospital mortality. According to the CART analysis, APTT of 39.2 s was identified as the best discriminator, while 120 mg/dL fibrinogen was the second split in the subgroup of APTT ≤ 39.2 s. Patients were stratified into three groups, in which mortality was as follows: 4.5 % (APTT ≤ 39.2 s, fibrinogen > 120 mg/dL), 20.5 % (APTT ≤ 39.2 s and fibrinogen ≤ 120 mg/dL) and 60.8 % (APTT > 39.2 s). Furthermore, length-of-stay in the ICU and duration of mechanical ventilation were significantly prolonged in patients with deteriorated APTT or fibrinogen values. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that APTT > 39.2 s and fibrinogen ≤ 120 mg/dL was independently associated with mortality in children with moderate to severe TBI. CONCLUSIONS: We concluded that admission APTT > 39.2 s and fibrinogen ≤ 120 mg/dL were independently associated with mortality in children with moderate to severe TBI. Early identification and intervention of abnormal APTT and fibrinogen in pediatric TBI patients may be beneficial to their prognosis.

Characteristics of coagulation alteration in patients with COVID-19.

Abnormal blood coagulation often occurs in critically ill patients, which seriously affects their prognosis. This retrospective study investigated the implications of changes in blood coagulation in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Records were reviewed for patients admitted with COVID-19 between February 4 and 16, 2020. The primary outcome was in-hospital death. A total of 85 patients were included, of whom 12 died in the hospital. The admission prothrombin time (PT), international normalized ratio (INR), and levels of D-dimer and fibrin/fibrinogen degradation products (FDP) were significantly higher in non-survivors than in survivors, while the reverse was true for prothrombin time activity (PT-act) and PaO2/FiO2. Multivariate logistic regression showed that PT-act < 75% was independently associated with mortality. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curves for PT-act, D-dimer, and FDP at admission could significantly predict mortality. The AUCs for PT-act were larger than those for D-dimer and FDP; however, there was no significant difference. After 2 weeks of treatment, the coagulation parameters of the surviving patients improved. COVID-19 is often accompanied by abnormal coagulation. PT-act at admission is able to predict mortality in patients with COVID-19 as can D-dimer and FDP levels. PT-act < 75% is independently associated with mortality.

Comparison of admission serum albumin and hemoglobin as predictors of outcome in children with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury: A retrospective study.

Hypoalbuminemia and anemia are frequent among in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI). We assess whether serum albumin and hemoglobin at admission can predict outcome in children with moderate to severe TBI.This retrospective study was conducted in a tertiary pediatric hospital between May 2012 and Jun 2018 included children with an admission Glasgow Coma Scale of ≤13.A total of 213 patients were included of whom 45 died in hospital. Multivariate logistic regression showed that hypoalbuminemia (serum albumin <30 g/L) was independently associated with mortality (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 3.059; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.118-8.371; P = .030) in children with moderate to severe TBI, while anemia (hemoglobin <90 g/L) was not independently associated with mortality (adjusted OR = 1.742; 95% CI: 0.617-4.916; P = .295). Serum albumin was significantly superior to hemoglobin (area under the curve [AUC] 0.738 vs AUC 0.689, P < .05) under receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. Hypoalbuminemia was also associated with reduced 14-day ventilation-free days, 14-day intensive care unit (ICU)-free days, and 28-day hospital-free days.Serum albumin at admission was superior to hemoglobin in predicting the mortality in children with moderate to severe TBI and also associated with reduced ventilator-free, ICU-free, and hospital-free days.