Archives of Disease in Childhood articles from March 2003

Archives of Disease in Childhood archives from March 2003

The British Association of Perinatal Medicine: the first 25 years (1976-2000). (British Association of Perinatal Medicine).
March 1, 2003... The founding, achievements, and aspirations of the British Association of Perinatal Medicine are reviewed BACKGROUND Although there were pioneers in the 1930s and 1940s such as Dr Mary Crosse of Sorrento in Birmingham, newborn care in...

Obituary.(Obituary)
March 1, 2003... 1923-2001 Friends and colleagues with or without arthritis from all over the world met in Southwark Cathedral on 16 February 2002 to remember and celebrate the life and work of Barbara Ansell, the doyen of paediatric rheumatology. So ended...

Biologic therapies for juvenile arthritis. (Barbara Ansell Series).
March 1, 2003... A group of therapies with exciting potential has emerged for children and young people with severe juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) uncontrolled by conventional disease modifying drugs. Theoretical understanding from molecular biologic...

Disseminated congenital neuroblastoma presenting at birth. (Images in Paediatrics).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... A full term female infant, born following a pregnancy complicated by maternal hypertension and decreased fetal movements, presented within four hours of birth with respiratory distress, hepatomegaly, and disseminated intravascular coagulopathy....

Intra-articular corticosteroid injections in juvenile idiopathic arthritis. (Barbara Ansell Series).
March 1, 2003... Therapeutic intervention with intra-articular steroid injections in juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) has evolved from experience with adults with inflammatory joint disease, with the earliest report being published in 1951. (1) The technique...

Use of methotrexate in juvenile idiopathic arthritis. (Barbara Ansell Series).
March 1, 2003... Methotrexate (MTX) has transformed the outlook for children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). Most of the evidence from uncontrolled clinical trials suggests that MTX is an effective agent for treating active JIA. Data from controlled...

Autologous heamatopoietic stem cell transplantation in juvenile idiopathic arthritis: a powerful strategy when other treatments have failed. (Rheumatology).
March 1, 2003... Despite modern therapies, juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) remains a significant cause of morbidity in children. The long term outcome of JIA is variable. Thus, while the prognosis for many children with JIA is good, over one third of...

Hib vaccination in infants born prematurely. (Original Article).
March 1, 2003... Aims: To document the immunogenicity and persistence of antibody to polyribosyl-ribitol phosphate (PRP) as well as the clinical protection against invasive Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) disease in premature infants immunised at the...

Diagnosis of Prader-Willi syndrome. (Archivist).
March 1, 2003... The relationship between genotype and phenotype in Prader-Willi syndrome has not been completely delineated. Clinical diagnosis is based on a list of major or minor criteria present in the neonatal period and in later childhood, adolescence,...

Pneumococcal nasopharyngeal carriage in children following heptavalent pneumococcal conjugate vaccination in infancy. (Original Article).
March 1, 2003... Aims: To ascertain whether the reduction in nasopharyngeal carriage of vaccine serotypes induced by pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PnCV) administered to infants persists beyond the age of 2 years. Methods: Non-randomised, unblinded...

Bacterial susceptibility to oral antibiotics in community acquired urinary tract infection. (Original Article).
March 1, 2003... Background: The most common oral antibiotics used in the treatment of urinary tract infection (UTI) are sulphonamides and cephalosporins, but emerging resistance is not unusual. Aims: To assess the change in susceptibility of urinary...

Long term follow up of serostatus after maternofetal parvovirus B19 infection. (Original Article).
March 1, 2003... Background: Maternofetal parvovirus B19 infection may result in fetal hydrops or abortion. Chronic infection has been associated with long term complications (polyarthritis, persistent aplastic anaemia, hepatitis). In pregnancy maternal...

Bacterial infections, immune overload, and MMR vaccine. (Short Report).
March 1, 2003... Combined measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine did not increase the risk of hospitalisation with invasive bacterial infection in the three months after vaccination; rather there was a protective effect. These results provide no support for...

Breast feeding and respiratory morbidity in infancy: a birth cohort study. (Original Article).
March 1, 2003... Aim: To examine the relation between the duration of breast feeding and morbidity as a result of respiratory illness and infection in the first year of life. Methods: Prospective birth cohort study of 2602 live born children ascertained...

Treatment compliance, passive smoking, and asthma control: a three year cohort study. (Original Article).
March 1, 2003... Aims: To study the role of treatment compliance and parents' smoking on asthma control in children with recently diagnosed mild or moderate persistent asthma who were prescribed inhaled anti-inflammatory treatment. Methods: Prospective...

Towards evidence based medicine for paediatricians. (Archimedes).
March 1, 2003... In order to give the best care to patients and families, paediatricians need to integrate the highest quality scientific evidence with clinical expertise and the opinions of the family. (1) Archimedes seeks to assist practising clinicians by...

Desperately seeking asylum. (Postcard from Down Under).
March 1, 2003... Opening the newspaper you read about a nation holding 2700 people in detention without trial. Of these, 600 are children, and of these, 50 are children not accompanied by a member of their family. Amnesty International alleges that staff refer...

Prevention of severe hypoglycaemia in type I diabetes: a randomised controlled population study. (Original Article).
March 1, 2003... Aims: To investigate use of targeted self study material in type I diabetes patient education regarding dissemination, perceived patient benefit, and prevention of severe hypoglycoemia. Methods: In a randomised 1:1:1 controlled study, 332...

Bronchodilation in infants with malacia or recurrent wheeze. (Original Article).
March 1, 2003... Background: Controversy remains regarding the effectiveness of bronchodilators in wheezy infants. Aims: To assess the effect of inhaled [[beta].sub.2] agonists on lung function in infants with malacia or recurrent wheeze, and to determine...

Parental reporting of smelly urine and urinary tract infection. (Original Article).
March 1, 2003... Background: Parents often report that young children have "smelly urine" or a particular urinary odour. There is little evidence that these observations are relevant to the diagnosis of urinary tract infection (UTI). Aims: To determine...

General anaesthesia or conscious sedation for painful procedures in childhood cancer: the family's perspective. (Original Article).
March 1, 2003... Background: Until recently, midazolam sedation was routinely used in our institution for bone marrow aspirates and lumbar punctures in children with cancer. It has been perceived by many doctors and nurses as being well tolerated by children...

Role of itraconazole in haematology/oncology. (Review).
March 1, 2003... The antifungal agents most frequently used in prophylaxis and treatment are amphotericin B (and its new lipid forms) and azoles such as fluconazole, itraconazole, and more recently voriconazole. This review assesses the role of itraconazole in...

Craniosynostosis due to premature closing of the sagittal suture. (Images in Paediatrics).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... A 7 month old boy was admitted to our paediatric department with a fever up to 40[degrees]C and diarrhoea. Physical examination revealed closed anterior fontanelle, scaphocephaly (long and narrow skull) (fig 1), frontal bossing, and two hair...

Congenital adrenal hypoplasia presenting as a chronic respiratory condition. (Case Report).
March 1, 2003... We describe two children with oxygen dependence, which resolved when congenital adrenal hypoplasia was diagnosed and treatment initiated. Chronic respiratory distress can be a symptom of adrenal hypoplasia and this should be taken into...

Birth prevalence of Prader-Willi syndrome in Australia. (Short Report).
March 1, 2003... This is the first population based study to estimate the birth prevalence of DNA proven Prader-Willi syndrome. Thirty infants were reported to the Australian Paediatric Surveillance Unit between 1 998 and 2000, a prevalence of 4 per 100 000...

A Rapunzel with a difference. (Images in Paediatrics).
March 1, 2003... An 8 year old girl with a severe language disorder and a background of fetal valproate syndrome presented with a three month history of abdominal pain, significant weight loss, and anorexia. Routine bloods and an abdominal ultrasound were...

Female sexual health care in cystic fibrosis. (Short Report).( )
March 1, 2003... Fifty five teenage girls with cystic fibrosis and their mothers were interviewed to assess the provision of sexual health information. Parents were the most common source of information for adolescents. The cystic fibrosis doctor was identified...

Can mild head injury cause ischaemic stroke? (Case Report).
March 1, 2003... Five cases of ischaemic stroke preceded by minor head trauma in children are described. All patients had striatocapsular infarction. Three had no cerebrovascular abnormality; two had turbulent flow in the proximal middle cerebral artery. None...

Mycoplasma pneumoniae associated organising pneumonia in a 10 year old boy. (Case Report).
March 1, 2003... We describe a 10 year old boy with organising pneumonia associated with acute Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection. The diagnosis of organising pneumonia was made by open lung biopsy and the M pneumoniae infection was proven serologically....

Letter.(Letter to the Editor)
March 1, 2003... If you have a burning desire to respond to a paper published in ADC or F&N why not make USC of our "rapid response" option? Log on to our website (www.archdischild.com), find the paper that interests you, click on "full text" and send your...

Handbook of Paediatric Investigations. (Book Review).(Book Review)
March 1, 2003... Edited by J Stroobant and D Field. Churchill Livingstone, 2001, [pounds sterling]30, Pp 408. ISBN: 0443051437 Stroobant and Field, perhaps the longest standing editorial partnership in UK paediatrics, have done it again. This time they...

Correction.
March 1, 2003... In the letter by Murugan et al (Arch Dis Child 2003;88:91) the abbreviation ECG was used in error. Throughout the letter, "echocardiogram" should be used. The journal apologises for the error.

The haemolyticuraemic syndrome. (Lucina).( )(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... An outbreak of diarrhoea due to Escherichia coli 0157:H7 in Pennsylvania in September 2000 was traced to a dairy farm open to the public where children observed and petted the animals (New England Journal of Medicine 2002;347:555-60). Of 51...

A case report from Copenhagen. (Lucina).
March 1, 2003... A case report from Copenhagen (New England Journal of Medicine 2002;347:576-80; see also editorial, ibid: 609-12) has shown that mitochondrial DNA may be inherited from the father. Usually mitochondria from sperm are effectively eliminated in...

Do you routinely examine the ears of children with a chronic cough? In France. (Lucina).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Do you routinely examine the ears of children with a chronic cough? In France (Lancet 2002;360:618) a boy was very extensively investigated over several years for a dry cough which began at the age of 8 years, one year after surgery for an...

Benign familial neonatal seizures begin on the second or third day of life and stop after a few weeks though epilepsy develops later in about 11% of cases. (Lucina).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Benign familial neonatal seizures begin on the second or third day of life and stop after a few weeks though epilepsy develops later in about 11% of cases. Mutations in potassium-channel genes may explain many cases. Benign familial infantile...

Moorfields Eye Hospital in London. (Lucina).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... One surgeon at Moorfields Eye Hospital in London (British Journal of Ophthalmology 2002;86:1282-6) performed surgery for ptosis on 340 children in the 8 years 1990-97. In 280 cases the ptosis was unilateral and the most common cause was...

The University of Glasgow. (Lucina).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Increased lifetime cancer risk may be one of the consequences of excess weight in early life. A long term (mean 41 years) follow up study of students at the University of Glasgow (Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health 2002;56:780-4) has...

A birth cohort study in southwest England. (Lucina).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Frequent (most days or daily) use of paracetamol in late pregnancy may increase the risk of wheezing in young children. A birth cohort study in southwest England (Thorax 2002;57:958-63) showed that it more than doubled the risk of wheezing at...

The National Screening Committee. (Lucina).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... A review (Journal of Medical Screening 2002;9:135-41) based on a report by the Antenatal Screening Sub-committee of the National Screening Committee concludes that the introduction in the UK of prenatal or neonatal screening for congenital...

A national case-control study in Sweden. (Lucina).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... A national case-control study in Sweden (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2002;75:914-21) has shown that, in children under 2 years old, breastfeeding at the time of introduction of gluten into the diet reduces the risk of coeliac disease...

In India late weaning is associated with stunting of growth. (Lucina).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... In India late weaning is associated with stunting of growth (International Journal of Epidemiology 2002;31:855-63). Data for 1992-93 from six regions of the country showed that children weaned at 6 months were 57% more likely to be stunted (>2...