Rotavirus vaccine effectiveness in Hong Kong children.

BACKGROUND: Rotavirus is a common infectious cause of childhood hospitalisation in Hong Kong. Rotavirus vaccines have been used in the private sector since licensure in 2006 but have not been incorporated in the government's universal Childhood Immunisation Programme. This study aimed to evaluate rotavirus vaccine effectiveness against hospitalisation. METHODS: This case-control study was conducted in the 2014/2015 rotavirus season in six public hospitals. Hospitalised acute gastroenteritis patients meeting inclusion criteria were recruited and copies of their immunisation records were collected. Case-patients were defined as enrolled subjects with stool specimens obtained in the first 48h of hospitalisation that tested positive for rotavirus, whereas control-patients were those with stool specimens obtained in the first 48h of hospitalisation testing negative for rotavirus. Vaccine effectiveness for administration of at least one dose of either Rotarix(®) (GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals) or RotaTeq(®) (Merck Research Laboratories) was calculated as 1 minus the odds ratio for rotavirus vaccination history for case-patients versus control-patients. RESULTS: Among the 525 eligible subjects recruited, immunisation records were seen in 404 (77%) subjects. 31% (162/525 and 126/404) tested positive for rotavirus. In the 404 subjects assessed for vaccine effectiveness, 2.4% and 24% received at least 1 dose of either rotavirus vaccine in case- and control-patients respectively. The unmatched vaccine effectiveness against hospitalisation for administration of at least one dose of either rotavirus vaccines was 92% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 75%, 98%). The matched analyses by age only and both age and admission date showed 96% (95% CI: 72%, 100%) and 89% (95% CI: 51%, 97%) protection against rotavirus hospitalisation respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Rotavirus vaccine is highly effective in preventing hospitalisation from rotavirus disease in young Hong Kong children.

Paramyxovirus Infection: Mortality and Morbidity in a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit.

OBJECTIVES: We investigated mortality and morbidity of patients admitted to a pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) with paramyxovirus infection. METHODS: A retrospective study between October 2002 and March 2015 of children with a laboratory-confirmed paramyxovirus infection was included. RESULTS: In all, 98 (5%) PICU admissions were tested positive to have paramyxovirus infection (respiratory syncytial virus = 66, parainfluenza = 27 and metapneumovirus = 5). The majority of admissions were young patients (median age 1.05 years). Bacteremia and bacterial isolation in any site were present in 10% and 28%, respectively; 41% were mechanically ventilated, and 20% received inotropes. The three respiratory viruses caused similar mortality and morbidity in the PICU. Fatality (seven patients) was associated with malignancy, positive bacterial culture in blood, the use of mechanical ventilation, inotrope use, lower blood white cell count and higher C reactive protein (p = 0.02-0.0005). Backward binary logistic regression for these variables showed bacteremia (odds ratio [OR]: 31.7; 95% CI: 2.3-427.8; p = 0.009), malignancy (OR: 45.5; 95% CI: 1.4-1467.7; p = 0.031) and use of inotropes (OR: 15.0; 95% CI: 1.1-196.1; p = 0.039) were independently associated with non-survival. March and July appeared to be the two peak months for PICU hospitalizations with paramyxovirus infection. CONCLUSIONS: Infections with paramyxoviruses account for 5% of PICU admissions and significant morbidity. Patient with premorbid history of malignancy and co-morbidity of bacteremia are associated with non-survival. March and July appeared to be the two peak months for PICU admissions with paramyxoviruses.

Intranasal corticosteroids for mild childhood obstructive sleep apnea--a randomized, placebo-controlled study.

BACKGROUND: The use of non-surgical treatment for childhood obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is gaining popularity, especially in children with mild disease. OBJECTIVE: To test the hypothesis that intranasal corticosteroids reduce disease severity in children with mild OSA. STUDY DESIGN: A randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial of intranasal mometasone furoate (MF) versus placebo in children aged 6 to 18 years with mild OSA. The primary outcome was the change from baseline obstructive apnea hypopnea index (OAHI), as documented by overnight polysomnography, after four months of treatment. RESULTS: Sixty-two children were recruited but 12 dropped out. This left 24 and 26 children for final analysis in the MF and placebo group, respectively. The OAHI and oxygen desaturation index (ODI) improved significantly in the MF group only. The OAHI decreased from 2.7 ± 0.2 to 1.7 ± 0.3 in the MF group, but increased from 2.5 ± 0.2 to 2.9 ± 0.6 in the placebo group (p = 0.039). The mean changes in ODI in the MF group and placebo group were -0.6 ± 0.5 and +0.7 ± 0.4, respectively (p = 0.037). CONCLUSION: Four months of treatment with intranasal mometasone furoate effectively reduces the severity of mild OSA in children.

A 20-year prospective study of Wilms tumor and other kidney tumors: a report from Hong Kong pediatric hematology and oncology study group.

BACKGROUND: Renal tumors are one of the most common tumors in children. We aim at evaluating the characteristics and the outcome of Wilms tumor and other malignant kidney tumors in Hong Kong. PROCEDURE: Between January 1990 to December 2010, 68 patients under the age of 18 with malignant renal tumors were diagnosed and received treatment in Hong Kong. Clinical records were updated regularly. Prognostic factors and survival rate were evaluated. RESULTS: Fifty-four patients were diagnosed with Wilms tumor. The annual incidence was estimated to be 2.29 per million. The mean age was 38 months. Median follow-up was 9.2 years. The event-free survival and overall survival rate at 10 years were 85.2% and 92.6%, respectively. A pair of siblings with familial extrarenal Wilms tumor was included. Pulmonary metastasis did exhibit a significant difference in survival rate. Eight cases of clear cell sarcoma of the kidneys were reported and the survival rate was 100%. CONCLUSIONS: The clinical characteristics and outcome of the patients diagnosed Wilms tumor were comparable with other developed countries. Relatively high proportion and excellent outcome were found in clear cell sarcoma of the kidneys.

Sleep architecture in school-aged children with primary snoring.

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to examine if sleep architecture was altered in school-aged children with primary snoring (PS). METHODS: Children ages 6 to 13 years from 13 primary schools were randomly recruited. A validated obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) screening questionnaire was completed by their parents. Children at high risk for OSA and a randomly chosen low-risk group were invited to undergo overnight polysomnography (PSG) and clinical examination. Participants were classified into healthy controls, PS, mild OSA, and moderate to severe OSA (MS OSA) groups for comparison. RESULTS: A total of 619 participants underwent PSG (mean age, 10.0 ± 1.8 years; 396 (64.0%) boys; 524 (84.7%) prepubertal). For the cohort as a whole, there were no significant differences in measures of sleep architecture between PS and nonsnoring healthy controls. In the multiple regression model, percentage of nonrapid eye movement (NREM) stage 1 (N1) sleep had a significantly positive association, whereas percentage of slow-wave sleep (SWS) had a significantly negative association with sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) severity after controlling for age, gender, body mass index (BMI) z score, and pubertal status. In prepubertal children with PS, no significant disruption of sleep architecture was found. However, pubertal adolescent PS participants had significantly higher adjusted percentage of N1 sleep and wake after sleep onset (WASO) compared to healthy controls. CONCLUSIONS: PS did not exert significant adverse influences on normal sleep architecture in prepubertal school-aged children. Nevertheless, pubertal adolescents with PS had increased N1 sleep and WASO.

Carotid jugular arteriovenous fistula: an unusual complication of internal jugular vein catheterization in children.

Central venous catheterization is essential in the management of patients requiring long-term intravenous access. Various risks during central line insertion have been described in the medical literature, including the potentially life-threatening complication of iatrogenic arteriovenous fistula (AVF). We describe a novel case of carotid jugular AVF following implanted port (BardPort® by C.R. Bard, Inc.) insertion in a pediatric oncology patient who had suffered cerebral infarct due to thromboembolism. Pediatr Blood Cancer 2012; 59: 1302-1304. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.