Epidemiological and microbiological characteristics of S. aureus pediatric infections in Colombia 2018-2021, a national multicenter study (Staphylored Colombia).

Background: Staphylococcus aureus infections are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in pediatric populations worldwide. The Staphylo Research Network conducted an extensive study on pediatric patients across Colombia from 2018 to 2021. The aim of this study was to describe the epidemiological and microbiological characteristics of S. aureus in this patient group. Methods: We analyzed S. aureus isolates from WHONET-reporting centers. An "event" was a positive culture isolation in a previously negative individual after 2 weeks. We studied center characteristics, age distribution, infection type, and antibiotic susceptibilities, comparing methicillin sensitive (MSSA) and resistant S. aureus (MRSA) isolates. Results: Isolates from 20 centers across 7 Colombian cities were included. Most centers (80%) served both adults and children, with 55% offering oncology services and 85% having a PICU. We registered 8,157 S. aureus culture isolations from 5,384 events (3,345 MSSA and 1,961 MRSA) in 4,821 patients, with a median age of 5 years. Blood (26.2%) and skin/soft tissue (18.6%) were the most common infection sources. Most isolates per event remained susceptible to oxacillin (63.2%), clindamycin (94.3%), and TMP-SMX (98.3%). MRSA prevalence varied by city (<0.001), with slightly higher rates observed in exclusively pediatric hospitals. In contrast, the MRSA rate was somewhat lower in centers with Antimicrobial Stewardship Program (ASP). MRSA was predominantly isolated from osteoarticular infections and multiple foci, while MSSA was more frequently associated with recurrent infections compared to MRSA. Conclusions: This is the largest study of pediatric S. aureus infections in Colombia. We found MSSA predominance, but resistance have important regional variations. S. aureus remains susceptible to other commonly used antibiotics such as TMP-SMX and clindamycin. Ongoing monitoring of S. aureus infections is vital for understanding their behavior in children. Prospective studies within the Staphylored LATAM are underway for a more comprehensive clinical and genetic characterization.

SARS-CoV-2 infection in newborn infants: descriptive epidemiological analysis of cases reported to the Colombian national surveillance system during the first pandemic year, March 2020-February 2021.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of newborn infants with SARS-CoV-2 infection notified in the Colombian Public Health Surveillance System. DESIGN: This epidemiological descriptive analysis was conducted using the data of all cases of newborn infants with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection notified in the surveillance system. Absolute frequencies and central tendency measures were calculated and a bivariate analysis comparing variables of interest with symptomatic and asymptomatic disease was performed. SETTING: Population-based descriptive analysis. PATIENTS: Laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases in newborn infants (aged ≤28 days of life) reported to the surveillance system from 1 March 2020 to 28 February 2021. RESULTS: 879 newborns were identified, corresponding to 0.04% of all reported cases in the country. The mean age at diagnosis was 13 days (range 0-28 days), 55.1% were male and most (57.6%) were classified as symptomatic. Preterm birth and low birth weight were identified in 24.0% and 24.4% of the cases, respectively. Common symptoms were fever (58.3%), cough (48.3%) and respiratory distress (34.9%). A higher prevalence of symptomatic newborns was seen in individuals with low birth weight for gestational age (prevalence ratio (PR): 1.51, 95% CI: 1.44 to 1.59) and newborns with underlying conditions (PR: 1.33, 95% CI: 1.13 to 1.55). CONCLUSIONS: There were a low proportion of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the newborn population. A substantial number of newborns were classified as symptomatic, having low birth weight and being preterm. Clinicians caring for COVID-19-infected newborns should be aware of population characteristics that potentially contribute to disease manifestations and severity.

Agreement between an Early-Onset Neonatal Sepsis Risk Calculator and the Colombian Clinical Practice Guideline in Three Tertiary-Care Centers in Bogotá, Colombia.

OBJECTIVE: Clinical practice guidelines (CPG) worldwide help steer the management of early-onset neonatal sepsis (EONS). These documents typically discourage the use of risk assessment tools. However, prior work has shown that the Kaiser Permanente calculator (Early-Onset Sepsis Calculator [EOScalc]) could be a useful tool in EONS risk assessment. This study aimed to determine the agreement between the recommendations of the Colombian EONS CPG and those of the EOSCalc tool in a cohort of newborns in Bogotá, Colombia. STUDY DESIGN: Multicenter retrospective observational cohort study. We included newborns with a gestational age ≥ 34 weeks who were admitted to the neonatal care unit with a suspected diagnosis of EONS between 2017 and 2019. Agreement between the two tools was examined using Cohen's kappa under two scenarios (unequivocal and cautious). RESULTS: Of the 23.490 live births, 470 (1.71%) were admitted to the neonatal care unit with a presumptive diagnosis of EONS. This diagnosis was confirmed in seven patients by means of blood cultures, with group B streptococcus the most common organism (57%; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 18.4-90.1). A single death occurred among the patients with confirmed EONS (lethality: 14.3%). The overall incidence of EONS was 0.298 per 1,000 live births. After splitting the recommendations into two scenarios regarding antibiotic use, unequivocal and cautious, the agreement between EOSCalc and the CPG was below 15% (6 and 14%, respectively). CONCLUSION: Recommendations from the Colombian EONS CPG show poor agreement with the EOSCalc, with the latter detecting all newborns with EONS. Although the use of EOSCalc is clinically and administratively advantageous, further prospective studies are warranted to determine the safety of its implementation. KEY POINTS: · Colombian EONS CPGs recommend that an outsized number of newborns be given antibiotics.. · The KP EOSCalc risk assessment calculator shows poor agreement with CPG recommendations.. · The Colombian CPGs should be updated to include the use of risk assessment calculators..

Epidemiological characteristics and serotype distribution of culture-confirmed pediatric pneumococcal pneumonia before and after PCV 10 introduction, a multicenter study in Bogota, Colombia, 2008-2019.

BACKGROUND: Pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) have decreased pneumonia in children. Colombia introduced mass vaccination with PCV10 in 2012. METHODS: Cases of pneumococcal pneumonia from 10 hospitals were included. Two periods were compared: pre-PCV10: 2008-2011 and post-PCV10: 2014-2019. The objective was to compare epidemiological and clinical characteristics before and after PCV10 vaccination. RESULTS: A total of 370 cases were included. Serotypes 1 (15, 11.2%) and 14 (33, 24.6%) were the most frequent in the pre-PCV10 period, with only 4 (3%) cases of serotype 19A and 1 case (0.7%) serotype 3. From the pre-PCV10 period to the post-PCV10 period, cases of serotypes 1 (6, 3.1%) and 14 (1, 7.8%) decreased, while cases of serotypes 19A (58, 30.2%), serotype 3 (32, 16.7%) and 6A (7, 3.6%) increased (p < 0.001); complicated pneumonia (CP) increased significantly (13.4% to 31.8%) (p < 0.001); hospitalizations increased from 8 (5.5-15) to 12 (7-22) days (p < 0.001); and the frequency of PICU admission increased from 32.8% to 51.6% (p = 0.001). The use of ampicillin-sulbactam (0.7% to 24%) and ceftriaxone/clindamycin (0.7% to 5.7%) increased in the post-PCV10 period. The duration of empirical antibiotic treatment was 7 (4-11) days in the pre-PCV10 period and increased to 10 (6-17) days (p < 0.001) in the post-PCV10 period. Lethality showed a slight nonsignificant increase (7.5% vs. 9.9%; p = 0.57) in the post-PCV10 period. CONCLUSIONS: PCV10 significantly decreased cases of serotypes 1 and 14, with an increase in cases of serotypes 19A, 3 and 6A, which were the predominant serotypes and had greater severity (e.g., admission to the PICU, CP and more resistance, with an increase in the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics and longer hospitalization) and subsequently included in PCV13. Current data support national and regional evidence on the importance of replacing PCV10 with a higher valence that includes 19A, such as PCV13, with the aim of reducing circulation, particularly of this serotype.

Differences Between Methicillin-susceptible Versus Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus Infections in Pediatrics: Multicenter Cohort Study Conducted in Bogotá, Colombia, 2014-2018.

BACKGROUND: The epidemiology of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) has changed in recent years. The present article is intended to establish differences between clinical, laboratory and imaging findings and outcomes of MSSA and MRSA infections, as well as among subgroups of infection such as skin and soft tissue infection, osteoarticular, bacteremia or pneumonia in a pediatric population from Bogota, Colombia. METHODS: Retrospective cohort study using clinical records of patients under 18 years of age treated at the participating centers in Bogota, Colombia, between 2014 and 2018. The first positive S. aureus culture was studied. MSSA and MRSA were compared. The χ2 test, Fisher exact test, and Kruskal-Wallis test were calculated, and the statistical significance was presented using the difference and its 95% CI. RESULTS: Five hundred fifty-one patients were included; 211 (38%) corresponded to MRSA and 340 (62%) to MSSA for a total of 703 cultures. A significantly higher probability of having an MSSA infection than MRSA was found in patients with previous heart disease (3.3% vs. 0.5%), neurologic disease (5.9% vs. 2.5%), recent major surgeries (11% vs. 5%) or who has an implanted device (11% vs. 4%). In contrast, in severe MRSA infections (bacteremia, osteoarticular infections and pneumonia), a higher rate of complications was seen (admission to the pediatric intensive care unit, mechanical ventilation and vasoactive support), and in osteoarticular MRSA, more than 1 surgery per case was seen (89% vs. 61%). Laboratory results and mortality were similar. CONCLUSIONS: MRSA was associated with a more severe course in bacteremia, osteoarticular infections and pneumonia. Some classical risk factors associated with MRSA infections were found to be related to MSSA. In general, with the exception of skin and soft tissue infection, there was an increased risk of pediatric intensive care unit admission and mechanical and inotropic support with MRSA in a pediatric population.

Evaluación de seguridad de la vacuna contra el virus del papiloma humano / Safety assessment of the human papillomavirus vaccine

Introducción: el cáncer de cuello uterino es en Colombia el segundo cáncer con mayor frecuencia y mortalidad en mujeres. Las vacunas contra el virus del papiloma humano (VPH) han mostrado efectividad para prevenir la infección por el virus y las lesiones precancerosas asociadas, sin embargo, se han reportado eventos negativos en salud, posiblemente asociados con la aplicación de la vacuna. Objetivo: examinar la seguridad del uso de la vacuna profiláctica contra el VPH. Metodología: se realizó una búsqueda sistemática en MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Database, IBECS, LILACS y fuentes complementarias. La selección de estudios se realizó por dos revisores independientes de acuerdo con criterios de elegibilidad predefinidos. Se incluyeron estudios experimentales, observacionales analíticos y observacionales descriptivos que reportaran desenlaces de seguridad y efectividad de la vacuna contra el VPH. La calidad de los estudios analíticos fue valorada mediante herramientas previamente definidas, de acuerdo a cada diseño. Los estudios descriptivos fueron considerados con alta probabilidad de sesgo. La calidad de la evidencia fue evaluada para cada desenlace reportado mediante la etodología Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE). Los resultados por cada desenlace fueron reportados de forma narrativa y presentados en perfiles de evidencia GRADE (estudios analíticos) y tablas de evidencia genéricas (estudios descriptivos). Resultados: fueron seleccionados 112 estudios que reportaron 305 resultados de desenlaces de seguridad reportados \r\nposterior a la aplicación de la vacuna contra el VPH, que incluyeron desenlaces para los cuales la vacunación mostró asociación estadísticamente significativa como factor de riesgo, desenlaces para los cuales la vacunación no mostró asociación como factor de riesgo, y desenlaces para los cuales la vacunación mostró resultados inconsistentes. La calidad de la evidencia fue baja y muy baja para la mayoría de los resultados reportados. Discusión y conclusión: Las principales debilidades de la evidencia identificada fueron falta de periodos adecuados de seguimiento para eventos de aparición tardía, falta de precisión de los resultados, y limitaciones en la medición de los desenlaces, verificación del periodo de latencia de \r\nlos mismos y control de los potenciales factores de confusión. Los determinantes más relevantes de \r\nla calidad fueron la falta de precisión de los resultados, probablemente por la baja frecuencia de los \r\neventos, y el carácter observacional de los estudios que evaluaron la mayor parte de los desenlaces \r\nreportados. Los resultados de asociación reportados no permiten establecer causalidad entre los \r\neventos y la vacunación. La baja calidad de la evidencia no implica que los resultados no sustenten \r\nla existencia, o no, de las asociaciones evaluadas; ni que los resultados no sean suficientes para \r\norientar decisiones; sino que es probable que estudios con mayor rigor metodológico muestren \r\nresultados diferentes. La mejor evidencia disponible hasta la fecha sustenta un adecuado perfil de \r\nseguridad de la vacuna contra el VPH, similar al reportado por la OMS para otras vacunas, que apoya \r\nsu utilización teniendo en cuenta los beneficios reportados en la literatura; sin que sea posible descartar la ocurrencia de eventos adversos graves raros, por lo cual es recomendable la \r\nimplementación de un sistema de vigilancia posvacunación, que garantice un apropiado reporte, \r\ndiagnóstico, seguimiento, análisis y retroalimentación a los usuarios, de los posibles eventos adversos de la vacunación, con enfoque en los eventos descritos en esta evaluación. (AU)

Tiflitis neutropénica en niños / Neutropenic typhlitis in children

Introducción. La tiflitis es una colitis necrozante con inflamación del ciego en pacientes neutropénicos, usualmente diagnosticada en la autopsia. Material y métodos. identificamos 18 niños hospitalizados en el Hospital Infantil de México Federico Gómez en un período de 10 años, con presencia de fiebre, dolor e hipersensibilidad abdominal sugestiva de tiflitis neutropénica. Resultados. Ocho de los 18 pacientes tenían evidencia radiológica de tiflitis en las radiografías de abdomen. Todos los pacientes presentaron neutropenia al momento del diagnóstico y 9 tenían bacteriemia documentada. Los 18 pacientes fueron tratados con diversos antibióticos, 4 de ellos sometidos a cirugía y 1 a colonoscopia. Once pacientes murieron, 10 se mejoraron médicamente y 1 quirúrgicamente. En orden de frecuencia, la tiflitis fue identificada en 9 pacientes con leucemia aguda no linfoide, en 6 con leucemia aguda linfoide; en 1 con anemia aplásica, neutropenia cíclica y carcinoma renal, respectivamente. Sólo 4 pacientes recibieron factor estimulador de colonias de granulocitos; y en todos los pacientes que sobrevivieron se observó un aumento de leucocitos polimorfonucleares a más de 500/mm3 documentado entre el cuarto y el décimosexto día de manejo médico y/o quirúrgico. Conclusiones. Recomendamos que ante un paciente con fiebre y neutropenia, con dolor e hipersensibilidad abdominal, además de datos como diarrea hematemesis se debe plantear como diagnóstico tiflitis neutropénia e instaurarse el manejo general y específico que incluye la valoración quirúrgica