A retrospective study examining the clinical significance of testing respiratory panels in children who presented to a tertiary hospital in 2019.

Background. Respiratory tract infections are a leading cause of hospital visits in the paediatric population and carry significant associated morbidity and mortality in this population. The introduction of respiratory panel testing has been said to guide clinicians in the overall management of patients. Methods. We conducted a retrospective study examining all respiratory panels carried out in our hospital during 2019 on paediatric patients. Patients included were those who had symptoms indicative of respiratory infections who presented acutely, including those with chronic respiratory conditions. A total of 188 respiratory panel results were obtained along with collected patient data. These were analysed using SPSS V. 25.0 to get the below mentioned results. Results. The majority (76.6 %) of patients were less than 3 years with 59 % of total population being males. The majority (80.9 %) had mild clinical severity score. The most common pathogen that was detected on the respiratory panel was Enterovirus Human Rhinovirus spp, followed by the influenza viruses. Only four cases were positive for bacterial pathogens (two Mycoplasma pneumoniae , one Bordetella pertussis and one Chlamydia pneumoniae ), which accounts for 2.1 % of all panels analysed. The significance of respiratory panels in influencing treatment were analysed in the forms of change of management plans before and after results of respiratory panels. This was observed in 14.4 % of patients who were not on any empiric medication and then based on panel results were started on medications, as well as 11.7 % who were on medications already, and the medications were altered based on the result of the panel (Chi square P=0.057). This was mainly seen with cases of influenza A H1N1 patients and to a lesser extent, Mycoplasma pneumonia. Conclusion. The use of respiratory panels in our hospital had little impact on patient care and management. The main organisms that influenced clinician decision in treatment were influenza A viruses and bacterial organisms ( Mycoplasma pneumoniae , Chlamydia pneumoniae and Bordetella pertussis ). Other than that, the use of clinical judgement proved more beneficial. We recommend use of specific testing for these organisms rather than the whole panel as case to case bases, which would be more cost-effective and consistent with patient management.

Day case endoscopic excision of an antrochoanal polyp in a paediatric patient.

Antrochoanal polyps (ACP; also known as Killian's polyp) are considered to be the most common type of choanal polyps, making up ~4-6% of all nasal polyps in the general population and ~33% of nasal polyps in the paediatric age group. Patient's suffering from ACP range between the ages of 5 and 80 years. Only 4% of the patients are children aged < than 10 years old. Overall there is a male predominance making up ~64% of the total number of patients. We report a case of an antrochoanal polyp in a 9-year-old girl who presented with complaints of unilateral nasal obstruction, snoring and obstructive sleep apnea. The patient underwent a computed tomography scan and was managed endoscopically for excision of the polyp, as a day case procedure.

A case report and literature review: incidental jejunal ectopic pancreatic tissue in an emergency bowel exploration for suspected intussusception.

Heterotopic pancreas (HP) is defined as pancreatic tissue which is an anatomically separate entity from the main pancreas and free from the organ's vascular or ductal continuity. Most cases of HP are asymptomatic and are diagnosed incidentally upon laparotomy or on autopsy. The diagnosis of HP can be extremely difficult. A few imaging modalities which include Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) may show characteristic features of HP. However, definitive diagnosis is made by histopathology. Conversely, these modalities may not differentiate a malignant neoplasm from a benign mass. Surgical excision is thought to be curative for HP. In this case report, we present a 62-year-old female with acute myelocytic leukemia on induction chemotherapy who developed abdominal pain during her hospital admission and was referred to the general surgery department. Abdominal computed tomography (CT) was done and showed signs of small bowel obstruction, perforation, and overlapping jejunoileal segments suggestive of intussusception. Upon surgical exploration two small bowel perforations were repaired, one iatrogenic and one pathological. On bowel run a jejunal mass was found, excised, and upon histopathology confirmed to be a mixed endocrine and exocrine heterotopic pancreatic choristoma. Definitive diagnosis of heterotopic pancreatic tissue is made by histopathology, and surgical excision is potentially curative. In conclusion, we recommend excising HP if found incidentally upon surgery as the diagnosis of HP and exclusion of neoplasm may not be possible without a histological specimen.