The Indirect Impact of COVID-19 on Children With Asthma / El impacto indirecto de la covid-19 en los niños con asma

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Extramedullary plasmacytoma in the airway of an HIV-positive child.

We describe a case of an extramedullary plasmacytoma (EMP) in an HIV-positive child. An 11- year-old, HIV-infected female patient, on antiretroviral therapy since 2010, was referred with difficult to control asthma and bronchiectasis. The lesion was identified on CT chest following persisting reduced air entry and unilateral wheezing on the right. Rigid bronchoscopy identified a large pedunculated fleshy mass in the right main bronchus. Biopsy revealed it to be a plasmacytoma. Right main bronchus sleeve resection was done with complete removal of the tumor. Histology confirmed it to be a solitary plasmacytoma localized to the right main bronchus.

Impact of fibrinolytics on the outcome of empyema in South African children.

BACKGROUND: Childhood pneumonia is common in all countries, and empyema is one of the commonest complications. The role of routine intrapleural fibrinolytics in the management of childhood empyema is not well established in low- and middle-income countries. METHODS: We did a prospective observational study of children sequentially hospitalised with empyema between December 2006 and December 2011 in South Africa (SA). Intrapleural tissue plasminogen activator (TPA), administered according to a standard protocol, was introduced in September 2009. Outcomes in children treated with TPA after 2009 were compared with the historical cohort not treated with TPA who met the treatment criteria. RESULTS: One hundred and forty-two children with empyema, median age 17 months (interquartile range 8-43), were admitted during the study period. Excluding children who did not have a chest tube inserted and those in whom fibrinolysis was contraindicated, there were 99 patients, 52 of whom received fibrinolytics. Clinical characteristics and empyema aetiology were similar in those who received fibrinolysis and those who did not. Eighteen children (38.3%) not treated with TPA required surgery v. 5 (9.6%) treated with TPA (relative risk 0.25; 95% confidence interval 0.1-0.6). The median duration of hospitalisation was similar in both groups. Complications occurred rarely and with a similar incidence in both groups. In-hospital mortality was low, with two deaths in each group. CONCLUSION: Intrapleural TPA resulted in a four-fold reduction in surgery. Fibrinolytics should be used for management of empyema in children in SA.

Etiology and Incidence of Pleural Empyema in South African Children.

BACKGROUND: South Africa introduced the 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV7) in 2009 and PCV13 in 2011. The etiology and incidence of childhood empyema in an 8-year period overlapping the introduction of PCV was investigated. METHODS: Children younger than 12 years admitted with empyema at a tertiary pediatric hospital in Cape Town, South Africa, from December 2006 to December 2011 (cohort A) and January 2012 to December 2014 (cohort B) were investigated. Pathogens were identified by culture of pleural fluid and blood. In addition, polymerase chain reaction targeting bacterial pathogens and Streptococcus pneumoniae serotypes was conducted on pleural fluid in a subset of patients enrolled 2009-2011. RESULTS: Cohort A: 142 children were prospectively enrolled, with a median age of 17 months (interquartile range 8-43). Most (92%) children were unimmunized with PCV. S. pneumoniae and Staphylococcus aureus were the most common culture-identified pathogens (each 25 of 142; 18%); polymerase chain reaction of pleural fluid increased yield of S. pneumoniae detection by 31% [26 of 54 (48%) vs. 9 of 54 (17%), P < 0.001]. Serotypes were identified for 24 of 26 (92%) patients with S. pneumoniae, of which 22 of 24 (92%) were included in PCV13. Cohort B: 22 patients were retrospectively identified. No pathogen was found in 12 of 22 (54.5%) patients and S. pneumoniae in 1 patient (4.5%). Empyema incidence declined by 50% in cohort B compared with that of cohort A (4.2 vs. 10.4 cases per 1000 pneumonia admissions; risk ratio: 0.5; 95% confidence incidence: 0.3-0.7). CONCLUSION: S. pneumoniae is the commonest cause of childhood empyema in South Africa. PCV has been highly effective at reducing empyema incidence in South African children.