Violence against children (VAC) is a global issue due to its biological, psychological, and social effects. Research in this field is valuable for understanding unknown aspects of VAC and for defining updated intervention strategies. Until now, there have been no clear indications about the possible effects of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on VAC.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe "red code" (RC) represents the highest level of emergency in the emergency department (ED). This study retrospectively analyzed RCs in the Regina Margherita Children's Hospital ED, a regional referral center in north Italy, between 1 July 2020 and 30 June 2023. The aim was to describe RC characteristics and to identify significant correlations between presenting complaints and clinical management.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: To investigate the accuracy of point-of-care ultrasound (PoCUS) in diagnosing acute appendicitis in children; to evaluate the concordance between PoCUS performed by a pediatric emergency physician (PedEm) and ultrasonography (US) performed by a radiologist; to draw a "learning curve."
Methods: We prospectively enrolled children aged 0-14 years old led to the Emergency Department of Regina Margherita Children's Hospital, from January 2021 to June 2021, with suspected acute appendicitis. PoCUS was performed by a single trained PedEm, blindly to the radiologist's scan.
In the scientific literature, few authors deal with child sexual abuse (CSA) in boys. In addition, these authors debate this phenomenon in most available articles without statistically evaluating the occurrence of different or similar distributions of variables under sex. In light of the above, the authors compared multiple variables between female and male samples.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFUnlabelled: . Early warning scores for clinical deterioration in pediatric patients: a literature review.
Introduction: An early recognition of clinical worsening (the manifestation of signs and symptoms resulting in physiological instability) in pediatric inpatients may prevent the evolution towards cardiorespiratory arrest.
Background: Preschool age (i.e. children under six years of age) represents a red flag for requiring neuroimaging to exclude secondary potentially urgent intracranial conditions (PUIC) in patients with acute headache.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: In patients with adrenal insufficiency (AI), adrenal crisis (AC) represents a clinical emergency. Early recognition and prompt management of AC or AC-risk conditions in the Emergency Department (ED) can reduce critical episodes and AC-related outcomes. The aim of the study is to report the clinical and biochemical characteristics of AC presentation to improve their timely recognition and proper management in a ED setting.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn children, hypothyroidism usually presents non-specific symptoms; symptoms can emerge gradually, compromising a timely diagnosis. We report the case of a 13-year-old male, who was admitted to the hospital due to swelling of the torso and neck. Besides these symptoms, the child was healthy, except for a significant growth delay.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Migraine is one of the most frequent primary headaches in childhood. The role of thrombotic predisposition in its pathogenesis is debated. Our aim was to analyse the cardiovascular risk factors and family history of major thrombotic events in children with migraine.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: The measurement of pain is the fundamental prerequisite for its proper management. Since newborns are unable to communicate verbally, neonatal algometric scales have been developed. However, no gold standard has been identified yet.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Sepsis and meningitis in children may present with different clinical features and a wide range of values of inflammatory markers. The aim of this study was to identify the prognostic value of clinical features and biomarkers in children with sepsis and bacterial meningitis in the emergency department (ED).
Methods: We carried out a single-center, retrospective, observational study on 194 children aged 0 to 14 years with sepsis and bacterial meningitis admitted to the pediatric ED of a tertiary children's hospital through 12 years.
Background: The relative high frequency of menstrual irregularities in the first two-three years after menarche may lead to the risk of underestimation of associated pathological conditions, which are always to be accurately researched with careful examination and anamnesis. The association between menstrual irregularities and hypothyroidism is described in literature but the available data are scarce and mainly based on adult case series. It is described that low plasma levels of thyroid hormone can shift the hemostatic system towards a hypocoagulable and hyperfibrinolytic state and seem to lead to an increased bleeding risk.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSeveral studies have investigated the correlation between the COVID-19 pandemic and the onset of type 1 diabetes (T1D) in children, reporting an increased incidence of T1D and severe diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). This study aimed to investigate the infection by SARS-CoV-2 in children with newly-diagnosed T1D to explore a possible link between SARS-CoV-2 infection, T1D and DKA. Thirty-nine children with a T1D new onset between October 15, 2020, and April 15, 2021, were enrolled.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Methemoglobinemia (MetHb) is a rare inherited or acquired cause of cyanosis in children. Owing to its rarity, case reports and case series are mostly available in the current literature. This study reports data on a large sample of children with acquired MetHb.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Rapid identification of Covid-19 in the paediatric emergency department is critical; Antigen tests are fast but poorly investigated in children.
Aims: To investigate Sars-CoV-2 antigen rapid test in children.
Methods: We compare the performance of LumiraDx with molecular tests in a paediatric emergency department.