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Paediatric burn injuries in the Jeddah area of Saudi Arabia: a study of 197 patients.

A prospective study was conducted on paediatric thermal injury patients admitted to the Burns Unit at King Fahd Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia over a 2-year period (December 1985 to December 1987). A total of 197 patients (out of 319) were paediatric, aged up to 18 years. Infants and toddlers accounted for 59.4 per cent and adolescents for 14.2 per cent. Scalding and flame injuries accounted for 98 per cent with most injuries occurring at home (97.5 per cent) and the overall paediatric mortality rate was 4.4 per cent.

Accidents, Home↗

Paediatric burns in central Finland between the 1960s and the 1980s.

This study comprised 359 paediatric burn-injury cases. The patients were collected from the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, taking 4 years from each decade. These children were treated exclusively in the Paediatric Surgery Department in the University Hospital of Tampere, Finland. We were interested in the backgrounds and living environments of our patients as well as the children themselves. Special attention was paid to risk factors and methods for prevention. Scalds at home and in the sauna rooms constituted the largest groups of injuries. The number of hospitalized patients has slightly decreased during the past three decades, whereas the proportion of girls has increased. The mortality was very low (0.28 per cent), a single case. This study shows that 80 per cent of born injuries in children occurred under the age of 4 years and over 80 per cent of all burn injuries involved hot liquids; modern kitchen technology has not significantly reduced this factor. The epidemiological profile of paediatric burns changed from the 1960s to the 1980s less than expected.

Adolescent↗

Central venous catheter sepsis with weekly catheter change in paediatric burn patients: an analysis of 221 catheters.

To document the risk of catheter sepsis associated with central venous catheter changes every 7 days in paediatric burn patients, and analysis of data collected prospectively on 234 such catheters was performed. During an 18-month period there were 301 acutely burned children admitted to a regional paediatric burn facility of whom 53, with an average burn size of 42 per cent TBSA, required 234 central venous catheters. A central venous catheter management protocol was followed which included catheter changes every 7 days. If insertion sites were clean and uninflamed, catheters were replaced by guidewire and the original catheter tip was semiquantitatively cultured. Catheters were replaced to a new site if insertion sites appeared inflamed or catheter tips grew 15 or more colony forming units. Overall, 3.2 per cent (10.9 per cent by Centers for Disease Control definition) of central venous catheters were associated with sepsis. When catheters were replaced by guidewire from one to three times, catheter sites were used for a mean of 15.6 days without an increased rate of line sepsis. There was no difference in sepsis rates between catheters placed at a new site or replaced by guidewire. There were no deaths attributed to catheter-related sepsis. We conclude that a protocol allowing for catheter change to a new site, or replacement by guidewire, every 7 days was associated with a low risk of catheter sepsis in paediatric burn patients.

Acute Disease↗

Paediatric trauma--the care of Anthony.

Trauma causes more than 50% of the deaths in children under the age of 16 years. The leading cause is road traffic accidents with children being involved as passengers, pedestrians or bicycle riders (Brown et al 1993). When a paediatric trauma patient arrives in the Accident and Emergency department it is usually met with trepidation and anxiety. The care of the paediatric trauma victim follows the same protocols and procedures as with an adult. The primary survey consists of airway with cervical spine control, breathing, circulation with haemorrhage control, disability and exposure. The secondary survey consists of a head-to-toe examination. There are certain differences between children and adults, and children should never be considered as little adults. This article covers the primary survey and highlights the essential differences between adult and paediatric trauma care.

Adult↗

Introduction of standardised emergency department paediatric asthma clinical guidelines into a general metropolitan hospital.

'Aiming for Asthma Improvement in Children' is a South East Sydney Area Health Service (SESAHS) initiative. It is funded by the Commonwealth Government, under the Chronic & Complex Care Programmes, which is linked to New South Wales (NSW) Government Action Plan. One specific objective of the programme is to implement standardised paediatric asthma guidelines across the Emergency Departments of an area tertiary and local area hospitals. This paper will focus on the process of piloting, implementing and evaluating the guidelines into one local area hospital within SESAHS. SESAHS includes Sydney Children's Hospital, Randwick, a major paediatric referral and tertiary teaching hospital in Sydney. The paediatric asthma clinical practice guidelines (CPG) were developed, piloted and disseminated from Sydney Children's Hospital, Randwick, for local implementation and adaptation. The successful introduction of these guidelines at the local hospital promoted evidence-based practice and reduced the admission rate for children with asthma.

Adolescent↗

[What are the changes in paediatric anaesthesia practice afforded by new anaesthetic ventilators?].

Because of specific paediatric respiratory physiology (mainly decreased compliance and functional residual capacity, increased O2 demand and CO2 production), ventilators for paediatric anaesthesia need to be powerful and able to deliver small volumes at a high rate without compression volume loss. The compensation of compliance now available on every anaesthesia machine, compensates for the volume of gas lost by compression in the circuit tubing allowing the tidal volume to reach preset commands, even for bellow in box respirators. Preset tidal volume is then totally delivered to the lung by volume-controlled ventilation because it becomes independent of total pulmonary compliance and fresh gas flow. Increased precision of electronic flowmeters and better air-tightness of circuits allow reducing with precision fresh gas flow to values approaching children's O2 consumption and N2O diffusion. New modes of ventilation are now available on anaesthesia machine. Pressure controlled mode, by increasing and maintaining mean airway pressures, ameliorates intrapulmonary gas distribution and compensates for the gas leak from uncuffed tracheal tubes. Unsteady tidal volume resulting from variation of total compliance, is the main drawback of pressure-controlled ventilation that may be overcome by using the "autoflow" mode (better described as a pressure controlled mode ensuring tidal volume) available with one of the last generation of ventilators. Increased accuracy and security of the mode "pressure assist" might increase the use of spontaneous ventilation in paediatric anaesthesia even for low weight children. However tidal volume remains variable with compliance and depth of anaesthesia, which may require several adjustments of ventilator's settings. The clinical conditions (mainly airway control) of pressure assist use for children less than 10 kg should be elucidated before recommending its use.

Anesthesiology↗

[Surgical management of paediatric malignant bone tumours].

The malignant bone tumours in children are rare, concerning 5% of the all paediatric tumours. Among all paediatric bone tumours, 15% of them are malignant. The main bone tumours in children are the osteosarcoma and the Ewing sarcoma. The diagnosis and treatment need a multidisciplinary medical team. It is essential in front of potential clinical or radiological signs, to perform quickly the specific medical exams and biopsy. The treatment needs a paediatric medical and surgical staff.

Adolescent↗

[Regional organization for intensive care in children, need for maintenance of competence in paediatric anaesthesia and intensive care].

The recent French text concerning the medical care both of the child and the teenager classifies the establishments either in specialized centers or in proximity centers according to their level in the management of children and teenagers, the competences of their medical teams, their organization in permanence of care and the volume of acts they carry out and pathologies they treat by class of age. This grid of the paediatric activities implies a new organization both in paediatric surgery and in paediatric ENT and consequently in the anaesthetic organization. Anaesthetic competences necessary to the achievement of this mission and the means of maintaining these later are analyzed and compared with some foreign experiments.

Adolescent↗

[Drug administration to paediatric inpatient].

OBJECTIVE: Available commercial drugs in France are often unsuitable for children. The aim of this study was, for every medicinal form orally or parenterally administered, to identify and to quantify difficulties met by the nurses administering drugs to paediatric inpatients and to propose solutions to main identified problems. MATERIAL AND METHOD: The study was realized in 14 hospitals by direct observation. The observer, provided with a questionnaire, followed during a time slot of at least 2 h for one or several nurses and raised all the oral or injectable administrations. RESULTS: One thousand and nine hundred forty-six observations were performed. The children were 12.6 +/- 17 months old, and weighed 8.5 +/- 9.4 kg. Injectable drugs: half of the observations showed a posology and a mode of dilution not corresponding to the summary of product characteristics. Eight percent of orally administered drugs were injectable drugs. In 35.5% of cases, administered amount was lower than the quarter of the present quantity in the therapeutic unity. The rest of the therapeutic unity was thrown (77.2% of cases). Liquid oral forms: liquid oral forms were ready for use regarding 83.8% of cases. The medicine was readministered to the same patient (23.5%), and/or administered to other patients (80.0%). Capsules: 66.9% of the administered capsules were prepared by the hospital pharmacies. The pharmacies organized with an unit dose drug dispensing system produced significantly more preparations than those working by global distribution (P < 0.0001). In 58.4% of cases, the administered capsule was an off-label drug. Tablets: 46% of drug administration concerned a tablet without pediatric indication. 46.7% of tablets were cut, 74% were crushed. Bags: in 35.2% of observations, the bag was not administered in its entirety. CONCLUSION: Our study confirms the unsuitability of drugs to paediatric inpatients, the necessity of recommendations of good practices in the administration of drugs to paediatric inpatients, and proposes corrective actions.

Child↗

Paediatric anaesthesia and inhalation agents.

Inhalation agents are amongst the mainstays of paediatric anaesthesia, as children are often induced by mask before venous access is obtained. Children do not like needles and obtaining venous access in an awake and moving child can be very demanding. Safety aspects are of particular importance in paediatric anaesthesia. Therefore, the possibility of monitoring end-tidal concentrations facilitates correct dosing in all patients, from the preterm infant weighing less than 1000 g to the adult-sized adolescent. For induction, sevoflurane has nearly universally replaced halothane, leading to increased cardiovascular safety. The main disadvantages of inhalation agents, especially sevoflurane and desflurane, are delirious behaviour and agitated states during emergence. In addition, there remains uncertainty regarding the relevance of the cerebral stimulating pattern of some of these agents. Inhalation anaesthesia has a long tradition, whereas the experience with propofol is comparatively small. The incidence and clinical relevance of the propofol infusion syndrome during clinical anaesthesia are still unknown. Inhalation anaesthesia is still considered to be the gold standard by the overwhelming majority of paediatric anaesthetists world-wide, however, intravenous techniques can be an attractive alternative in specific clinical situations.

Anesthesia, General↗

Intranasal fentanyl is an equivalent analgesic to oral morphine in paediatric burns patients for dressing changes: a randomised double blind crossover study.

INTRODUCTION: The ideal analgesic agent for burns wound dressings in paediatric patients would be one that is easy to administer, well tolerated, and produces rapid onset of analgesia with a short duration of action and minimal side-effects to allow rapid resumption of activities and oral intake. We compared our current treatment of oral morphine to intranasal fentanyl in an attempt to find an agent closer to the ideal. METHODS: A randomised double blind two-treatment crossover study comparing intranasal administration of fentanyl (INF) to orally administered morphine (OM). Children with burn injury aged up to 15 years and weighing 10-75 kg were included. Primary end-point was pain scores. Secondary end-points were time to resumption of age-appropriate activities, time to resumption of fluid intake, sedation and cooperation. Routine observations and vital signs were also recorded. RESULTS: Twenty-four patients were studied with a median age of 4.5 years (interquartile range 1.8-9.0 years) and a median weight of 18.4 kg (interquartile range 12.9-33.2kg). Mean pain difference scores (OM-INF) ranged from -0.500 (95% CI=-1.653 to 0.653) at baseline to -0.625 (05% CI=-1.863 to 0.613) for a retrospective rating of worst pain experienced during the dressing procedure. All measurements were within a pre-defined range of equivalent efficacy. The median time to resumption of fluid intake was 108 min (range 44-175 min) with OM and 140 min (range 60-210 min) with INF. These differences were not statistically significant. Fewer patients experienced mild side-effects with INF compared to OM (n=5 versus n=10). No patients experienced depressed respirations or oxygen saturations. SUMMARY: Intranasal fentanyl was shown to be equivalent to oral morphine in the provision of analgesia for burn wound dressing changes in this cohort of paediatric patients. It was concluded that intranasal fentanyl is a suitable analgesic agent for use in paediatric burns dressing changes either by itself or in combination with oral morphine as a top up titratable agent.

Administration, Intranasal↗

Paediatric burns in Kuwait: incidence, causes and mortality.

From a prospective study on burn patients admitted at the Burn Center in Kuwait during 1993-2001, 826 paediatric burn cases, in 0-14 years age group, were retrieved to study incidence, causes, and mortality among children. The demographic characteristics, clinical features, and outcome constituted our data file in Statistical Software, SPSS. Overall incidence rate was 17.5/100,000 children aged 0-14 years, being almost twice (34/100,000) among those between 0 and 4 years, constituting 70.8% of all paediatric burns. Scald was the main cause of burn (67%), followed by flame (23%). Mean age (6.4 years) of children with flame burns, was significantly higher (p < 0.001) than those with scalds, or other causes. A positive significant correlation existed between duration of hospital stay and TBSA% (r = 0.56, p < 0.001). Overall mortality rate was 0.23/100,000 children, maximum (0.52/100,000) being in children below 5 years. Among 11 (1.3%) non-survivors, flame burns caused nine fatalities. Multiple logistic regression mooring predicted children aged < 5 years, flame burns and TBSA >or= 70%, (OR = 29.2, p < 0.001), as main contributing factors to fatal outcome among children. Gender and nationality had no influence on incidence or mortality. These findings will hopefully stimulate development of targeted and sustainable interventions for reducing burns occurrence among identified paediatric high-risk groups.

Adolescent↗

Parenteral nutrition with standard solutions in paediatric intensive care patients.

BACKGROUND: Paediatric intensive care patients often require parenteral nutrition (PN). Only very few standard mixtures are available for infants and children. Individual PN solutions need to be compounded manually on the ward, if preparation by the hospital pharmacy is not feasible. Since manual compounding is associated with a greater risk of compounding errors and microbial contamination, the use of standard solutions might be a preferable alternative. METHODS: We evaluated the use of standard solutions on the paediatric intensive care unit of the von Hauner Children's Hospital at the University of Munich over a period of 8 months. PN solutions were either prescribed individually or as standard solutions. We evaluated the frequency of standard solution prescriptions and their modification, compared nutrient intakes with standard vs. individual PN solutions as well as the occurrence of laboratory anomalies. RESULTS: Standard PN solutions were prescribed in 68% of cases, individual PN solutions in 32%. Modifications of standard PN solutions were performed in 54%. The intake of a number of macronutrients and electrolytes was similar with individual and standard PN, but calcium and phosphate intakes were lower with individual total PN. Electrolyte imbalances occurred slightly more often with individual PN than with standard PN (34% vs. 26%, respectively). CONCLUSION: Standard PN solutions were used in the majority of patients on a paediatric intensive care unit. We did not detect indications for inadequacy of standard solutions in the majority of patients reviewed.

Adolescent↗

Therapeutic ERCP in paediatric patients.

BACKGROUND: Major limitations of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography in paediatric populations are a low incidence of biliopancreatic disease among children, the equipment dimensions (size of endoscopes and devices) and the increasing role of MR-cholangiopancreatography in the field of diagnostic indications. Aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic and therapeutic yields of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography for biliopancreatic diseases in a paediatric population. METHODS: Between 1996 and 2002, 48 endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatographies were performed in 38 children aged 4 weeks to 17 years as part of the diagnostic evaluation for suspected pancreatic or biliary tract disease. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography was carried out under general anaesthesia, using prototype paediatric duodenoscopes or standard duodenoscopes in children younger or older than 18 months, respectively. RESULTS: The indications to perform endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography were common bile duct stones (14 children), biliopancreatic abnormalities (8), primary sclerosing cholangitis (2), Wirsung disruption (1), biliary leakage (1), cholestasis (4) and pancreatitis (8). Cannulation was successful in all patients but one. Sphincterotomy together with stone extraction or stent insertion was performed in 30/38 patients. Immediate complications were mild and treated conservatively. CONCLUSIONS: Diagnostic and therapeutic endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography can be used safely and effectively in the management of biliopancreatic diseases in childhood as well. Indications, endoscopic techniques and complications are similar to those reported for adult patients.

Acute Disease↗

FLT3 inhibitors: a paradigm for the development of targeted therapeutics for paediatric cancer.

The area of molecularly-targeted cancer therapeutics is generating tremendous interest and excitement. While clinical investigation of these agents has been largely limited to adults, clinical trials for paediatric cancer patients with many of these agents are now underway. This paper reviews the current status of molecularly-targeted therapies for paediatric malignancies, with special attention given to one class of agents, inhibitors of the FLT3 receptor tyrosine kinase. FLT3 is expressed and activated in many human leukemias, including a significant percentage of pediatric AML and infant and childhood ALL, especially in the setting of MLL gene rearrangement. Activating mutations of FLT3 portend a poor prognosis in pediatric AML. Activated FLT3 can be effectively and selectively targeted by small molecule inhibitors, and these agents have shown promise in early phase clinical trials in adults with AML. Limited preclinical data with FLT3 inhibitors in MLL-rearranged ALL have also been reported. Challenges and future directions for the use of FLT3 inhibitors and other targeted agents in paediatric cancer are discussed.

Adjuvants, Immunologic↗

Use of paediatric versus adult oncology treatment centres by adolescents 15-19 years old: the Canadian Childhood Cancer Surveillance and Control Program.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the treatment patterns of adolescents with cancer in Canada to ensure this population is receiving the most appropriate care. The Treatment and Outcome Surveillance (TOS) system was compared with the Canadian Cancer Registry (CCR) to estimate the proportion of adolescents (15-19 years) treated in Canadian paediatric oncology centres from 1995 to 2000 inclusive. Using TOS, the demographic, disease, and clinical characteristics of adolescents treated in paediatric versus adult centres in the Prairies were compared and differences were tested statistically. Approximately 30% of Canadian adolescents with cancer were treated in a paediatric centre. Adolescents treated in an adult centre were older at diagnosis and more likely to have carcinoma or germ cell tumours. The time between symptom onset and first treatment was longer for these adolescents, primarily due to the time between first health-care contact and assessment by a treating oncologist or surgeon. They were less likely to be enrolled in a clinical trial. These results suggest that care for adolescents with cancer in Canada is less satisfactory than for younger children, and can be improved.

Adolescent↗

Paediatric cancer pain management using the WHO analgesic ladder--results of a prospective analysis from 2265 treatment days during a quality improvement study.

OBJECTIVE: To collect data on pain management in paediatric oncology with respect to the WHO ladder approach. SETTING, DESIGN, PATIENTS AND METHODS: Eight German tertiary care paediatric oncology centres prospectively documented all their in-patient pain treatment courses from June 1999 to December 2000. Pain was scored using a 1-6 faces scale. RESULTS: Two hundred and twenty four patients (median age, 9 years; range 0.2-32.1) were enrolled. Three hundred and thirty three pain episodes comprising a total of 2265 treatment days were documented. Pain was mostly therapy associated. The most frequently administered non-opioid analgesics were dipyrone and paracetamol. On WHO step 2, tramadol was almost the only opioid used. During tramadol monotherapy average daily pain scores were lower than with a combination of tramadol and non-opioid analgesics. On WHO step 3, morphine was at least part of the analgesic regimen on most treatment days. Strong opioids were combined with a non-opioid analgesic on 41% of the treatment days. The mean intravenous morphine equivalence dose was 0.034 mg/kg/h. During opioid and non-opioid combination therapy, adverse effects were more frequent, and average pain scored higher than on opioid monotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: WHO-guidelines were closely followed in Germany and seem to provide effective analgesia for children with cancer pain. In our patient group there is no evidence that a combination of an opioid with a non-opioid is more effective than opioid therapy alone in in-patient paediatric oncology pain treatment.

Acetaminophen↗

Clinical and electrophysiological findings and long-term outcomes in paediatric patients with critical illness polyneuromyopathy.

BACKGROUND: Neuromuscular weakness in paediatric patients with sepsis and multiple organ dysfunction is increasingly reported. However, many aspects of neuromuscular involvement in critically ill children are not completely understood. As more patients survive the critical illness, an understanding of the long-term outcomes of this condition is needed. AIMS: To describe clinical and electrophysiological features and evaluate the long-term outcomes in critically ill paediatric patients with neuromuscular complications. METHODS: A case series of five critically ill children was observed prospectively for a 1-month period. Selected clinical and laboratory parameters were evaluated. Electrophysiological studies were performed during the first week and then 1 month later in order to detect signs of critical illness polyneuromyopathy (CIPM). Patients with neuromuscular involvement completed a 1-year follow-up. RESULTS: Electrophysiological abnormalities were detected in two patients. Flaccid quadriplegia was a clinical presentation. Both children had electromyographic evidence of chronic partial denervation at follow-up, findings indicative of a preceding axonal neuropathy. Marked but incomplete recovery within 1 year after the onset of the disease occured in both patients. With a mild residual functional handicap the health-related quality of life was not significantly impaired (Barthel Index > 80). CONCLUSIONS: In both our patients with CIPM, the long-term clinical outcome is markedly better than we expected when electromyography in the 1-year follow-up demonstrated a persistent severe chronic partial denervation. These findings can have important implications for the management and rehabilitation of paediatric intensive care survivors.

Adolescent↗