A new index of ultrasonography for estimating cerebral circulation in newborn infants.

Purpose: To quantitatively estimate the influence of ductal shunt on cerebral blood flow and establish a new index of ultrasonography for estimating cerebral circulation without the influence of ductal shunt in newborn infants.

Methods: We retrospectively examined the records of anterior cerebral artery (ACA) and left pulmonary artery (LPA) blood flow velocity curves recorded by pulsed Doppler ultrasonography within 6 h after birth in 123 newborn infants without asphyxia (normal group) and in 31 newborn infants with asphyxia (asphyxia group).

Results: In the normal group, the resistance index (RI) of the ACA showed a positive correlation with the ratio of LPA diastolic-to-systolic flow velocities (LPAD/LPAS) (P < 0.

Comparison of methemoglobin levels in food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome and other gastrointestinal diseases in neonates.

Introduction And Objectives: Methemoglobinemia has been reported to be associated with severe food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome (FPIES). However, no reports have evaluated methemoglobin (MHb) levels in FPIES without symptomatic methemoglobinemia or the usefulness of MHb measurement for the diagnostic prediction of FPIES. To evaluate the MHb levels of patients with neonatal-onset FPIES and determine whether MHb levels are higher in FPIES than in other gastrointestinal diseases.

Complications in Infants of Diabetic Mothers Related to Glycated Albumin and Hemoglobin Levels During Pregnancy.

Background: This study was conducted to investigate whether glycated albumin is a useful glycemic marker from the point of view of infant complications for monitoring glycemic control in pregnant women with diabetes or gestational diabetes mellitus.

Methods: We retrospectively studied 42 Japanese infants of diabetic mothers and their mothers at our facility between May 2010 and July 2013. The mean glycated albumin and glycated hemoglobin levels were compared between mothers of infants with complications and those without complications.

Myocardial strain of the left ventricle in normal children.

Background: There have been few reports regarding cardiac strain in children. The present study was performed to determine the reference values for circumferential and radial strains of the left ventricle in normal children and discern the relative influence of aging and cardiac growth on these left ventricular functional indices.

Methods: The study population consisted of 180 children (aged 2 months to 21 years) who had normal cardiac function and normal cardiac load.

Aging change of left ventricular function in children evaluated by acoustic quantification method.

Background: There are few reports about acoustic quantification (AQ) in the area of pediatrics. We aim to determine normal values of AQ analysis and investigate the aging change of left ventricular function in children.

Methods: The subjects in this study included 137 patients (aged 29 days to 18 years) who had normal cardiac function and no cardiac load.

Congenital hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis in a preterm infant: cytokine profile and a review of the disease.

A preterm infant with very low birth weight was born with fetal onset familial hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis. Known gene abnormalities responsible for the disease were not identified in the patient. The infant died at 13 months of age owing to complications from cord blood stem cell transplantation.