Twenty-four Month Outcomes of Extended- Versus Standard-course Antibiotic Therapy in Children Hospitalized With Pneumonia in High-risk Settings: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Pediatric community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) can lead to long-term respiratory sequelae, including bronchiectasis. We determined if an extended (13-14 days) versus standard (5-6 days) antibiotic course improves long-term outcomes in children hospitalized with CAP from populations at high risk of chronic respiratory disease.

Methods: We undertook a multicenter, double-blind, superiority, randomized controlled trial involving 7 Australian, New Zealand, and Malaysian hospitals.

Antiviral strains associate with endoplasmic reticulum membranes and induce lipid droplet formation to restrict dengue virus replication.

are a genus of insect endosymbiotic bacteria which includes strains Mel and AlbB that are being utilized as a biocontrol tool to reduce the incidence of -transmitted viral diseases like dengue. However, the precise mechanisms underpinning the antiviral activity of these strains are not well defined. Here, we generated a panel of -derived cell lines infected with antiviral strains Mel and AlbB or the non-antiviral strain Pip to understand host cell morphological changes specifically induced by antiviral strains.

Morbidity and treatment costs of cystic fibrosis in a middle-income country.

Introduction: : Asian children with cystic fibrosis (CF) managed in Malaysia have significant morbidity with limited access to life-sustaining treatments. We determined the morbidity and treatment cost of CF in a resource-limited country.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included all children diagnosed with CF in our centre.

The impact of eye gaze on social interactions of females in virtual reality: The mediating role of the uncanniness of avatars and the moderating role of task type.

The introduction of the Metaverse and the rise of social virtual reality platforms such as VRChat has led to increased communication and collaboration in virtual reality. As interactions in social virtual reality take place through avatars, the behaviour, and in particular the eye gaze of an avatar can have an impact on the user experience. However, it is still unclear which features of the user experience are most influenced.

The outcome of COVID-19 in children with chronic lung disease: Systematic review and meta-analyses.

Background: Few studies have examined the impact of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection on children with chronic lung disease (CLD).

Objective: To perform a systematic review and meta-analysis to determine the prevalence, risk factors for contracting COVID-19, and complications of COVID-19, in children with CLD.

Methods: This systematic review was based on articles published between January 1, 2020 and July 25, 2022.

Poor sleep quality in children with atopic dermatitis and its effects on behavior: A multicenter cross-sectional study from a low-middle-income country.

Background: Sleep disturbance in children with atopic dermatitis (AD) frequently goes unnoticed and can be associated with behavioral challenges. The aims of this study were to determine (a) the prevalence and factors associated with sleep disturbance and behavioral problems and (b) the correlation between sleep disturbance and behavioral problems in children with AD.

Methods: This cross-sectional study involved children aged 4-12 years old with moderate to severe AD.

Colonization of the newborn respiratory tract and its association with respiratory morbidity in the first 6 months of life: A prospective cohort study.

Objectives: We aimed to determine the association between newborn bacterial colonization and infant respiratory morbidity in the first 6 months of life.

Methods: This prospective study included healthy newborn infants. Nasopharyngeal swabs performed within 72 hours of delivery were analyzed using polymerase chain reaction.

Outcomes of neonatal congenital diaphragmatic hernia in a non-ECMO center in a middle-income country: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: Most studies examining survival of neonates with congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) are in high-income countries. We aimed to describe the management, survival to hospital discharge rate, and factors associated with survival of neonates with unilateral CDH in a middle-income country.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical notes of neonates with unilateral CDH admitted to a pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) in a tertiary referral center over a 15-year period, from 2003-2017.

Extended Versus Standard Antibiotic Course Duration in Children <5 Years of Age Hospitalized With Community-acquired Pneumonia in High-risk Settings: Four-week Outcomes of a Multicenter, Double-blind, Parallel, Superiority Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: High-level evidence is limited for antibiotic duration in children hospitalized with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) from First Nations and other at-risk populations of chronic respiratory disorders. As part of a larger study, we determined whether an extended antibiotic course is superior to a standard course for achieving clinical cure at 4 weeks in children 3 months to ≤5 years old hospitalized with CAP.

Methods: In our multinational (Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia), double-blind, superiority randomized controlled trial, children hospitalized with uncomplicated, radiographic-confirmed, CAP received 1-3 days of intravenous antibiotics followed by 3 days of oral amoxicillin-clavulanate (80 mg/kg, amoxicillin component, divided twice daily) and then randomized to extended (13-14 days duration) or standard (5-6 days) antibiotics.

Danger, high voltage! Using EEG and EOG measurements for cognitive overload detection in a simulated industrial context.

Industrial settings will be characterized by far-reaching production automation brought about by advancements in robotics and artificial intelligence. As a consequence, human assembly workers will need to adapt quickly to new and more complex assembly procedures, which are most likely to increase cognitive workload, or potentially induce overload. Measurement and optimization protocols need to be developed in order to be able to monitor workers' cognitive load.

Maternal diet during pregnancy and infant respiratory morbidity: A prospective study.

Background And Objectives: Maternal diet during pregnancy may impact infant respiratory morbidity. The aim was to determine the association between antenatal maternal diet and respiratory morbidity of their infants during their first 6 months of life.

Methods And Study Design: This prospective cohort study included healthy motherinfant pairs.

Socioeconomic costs of children <5 years hospitalised with acute respiratory infections in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Background: Acute respiratory infections (ARI) are a major cause of morbidity and mortality in Malaysian children < 5 years. Knowledge of associated economic costs is important for policymakers to determine cost-effectiveness of interventions, such as pneumococcal or influenza vaccines, which are underused in Malaysia.

Methods: Children < 5 years admitted with ARI to a teaching hospital in Kuala Lumpur were prospectively recruited between July 2013 and July 2015.

Obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS) as a risk factor for secondary osteoporosis in children.

Repetitive hypoxia seen in obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS) may affect bone metabolism increasing the risk for secondary osteoporosis. This study investigates the association between OSAS in children and secondary osteoporosis. This cross-sectional study included 150 children aged 10-17 years: 86 with OSAS and 64 with no OSAS.

Health-related quality of life and developmental outcome of children on home mechanical ventilation in a developing country: A cross-sectional study.

Background: Provision of home mechanical ventilation (HMV) to children with chronic respiratory insufficiency enhances growth and quality of life. The hypothesis was that health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and the development of these children were poorer than in healthy children.

Objectives: To determine the HRQoL and developmental outcome of children on HMV.

Bacterial pneumonia and its associated factors in children from a developing country: A prospective cohort study.

Introduction: Pneumonia in children is a common disease yet determining its aetiology remains elusive.

Objectives: To determine the a) aetiology, b) factors associated with bacterial pneumonia and c) association between co-infections (bacteria + virus) and severity of disease, in children admitted with severe pneumonia.

Methods: A prospective cohort study involving children aged 1-month to 5-years admitted with very severe pneumonia, as per the WHO definition, over 2 years.

Molecular detection and genotypic characterisation of isolated from children in Malaysia.

() is one of the main causative agents of pneumococcal diseases. To date, more than 90 distinct serotypes have been identified. Implementation of vaccines has caused a drastic reduction in vaccine-serotype pneumococcal diseases but increase in cases due to non-vaccine serotype has been observed in Malaysia.

Respiratory sequelae and quality of life in children one-year after being admitted with a lower respiratory tract infection: A prospective cohort study from a developing country.

Introduction: Respiratory tract infections in children can result in respiratory sequelae. We aimed to determine the prevalence of, and factors associated with persistent respiratory sequelae 1 year after admission for a lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI).

Methodology: This prospective cohort study involved children 1 month to 5-years-old admitted with an LRTI.

HOspitalised Pneumonia Extended (HOPE) Study to reduce the long-term effects of childhood pneumonia: protocol for a multicentre, double-blind, parallel, superiority randomised controlled trial.

Introduction: Early childhood pneumonia is a common problem globally with long-term complications that include bronchiectasis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. It is biologically plausible that these long-term effects may be minimised in young children at increased risk of such sequelae if any residual lower airway infection and inflammation in their developing lungs can be treated successfully by longer antibiotic courses. In contrast, shortened antibiotic treatments are being promoted because of concerns over inducing antimicrobial resistance.

Correction: Epidemiology, clinical presentation and respiratory sequelae of adenovirus pneumonia in children in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.

Serotypes & penicillin susceptibility of isolated from children admitted to a tertiary teaching hospital in Malaysia.

Background & Objectives: Streptococcus Pneumoniae: (pneumococcus) is a highly invasive extracellular pathogen that causes diseases such as pneumonia, otitis media and meningitis. This study was undertaken to determine the serotype diversity and penicillin susceptibility of S. pneumoniae isolated from paediatric patients in a tertiary teaching hospital in Malaysia.

Epidemiology, clinical presentation and respiratory sequelae of adenovirus pneumonia in children in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Objectives: To describe the severity, human adenovirus (HAdV) type and respiratory morbidity following adenovirus pneumonia in children.

Methodology: Retrospective review of children under 12 years of age, admitted with HAdV pneumonia, between January 2011 and July 2013, in a single centre in Malaysia. HAdV isolated from nasopharyngeal secretions were typed by sequencing hypervariable regions 1-6 of the hexon gene.

Predictive risk factors for complicated pneumonia in Malaysian children.

Aim: To investigate baseline characteristics associated with complicated community-acquired pneumonia (CAPc) in Malaysian children. CAPc, such as pleural effusion and/or empyema, is on the rise, especially in Southeast Asian children, and the reasons for this are unknown.

Methods: A retrospective study was conducted on all children aged 2-16 years who were admitted to the University Malaya Medical Centre with community-acquired pneumonia between 2012 and 2014.

Novel Wolbachia-transinfected Aedes aegypti mosquitoes possess diverse fitness and vector competence phenotypes.

Wolbachia pipientis from Drosophila melanogaster (wMel) is an endosymbiotic bacterium that restricts transmission of human pathogenic flaviviruses and alphaviruses, including dengue, Zika, and chikungunya viruses, when introduced into the mosquito vector Aedes aegypti. To date, wMel-infected Ae. aegypti have been released in field trials in 5 countries to evaluate the effectiveness of this strategy for disease control.