Anemia among Pediatric Critical Care Survivors: Prevalence and Resolution.

To determine the incidence of anemia among pediatric critical care survivors and to determine whether it resolves within 6 months of discharge. Design. A prospective observational study.

Therapeutic drug monitoring in pregnancy.

Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) is commonly recommended to optimize drug dosing regimens of various medications. It has been proposed to guide therapy in pregnant women, in whom physiological changes may lead to altered pharmacokinetics resulting in difficulty in predicting the appropriate drug dosage. Ideally, TDM may play a role in enhancing the effectiveness of treatment while minimizing toxicity of both the mother and fetus.

Palatability, adherence and prescribing patterns of antiretroviral drugs for children with human immunodeficiency virus infection in Canada.

Purpose: To assess the impact of perceived palatability of antiretroviral drugs on adherence to therapy of children infected by human immunodeficiency virus and on prescribing patterns by their caring physicians.

Design: Two arms--retrospective chart review and a cross-sectional survey.

Setting: Tertiary-care pediatric human immunodeficiency virus clinic during a 17-year period.

Elective tracheostomy in mechanically ventilated children in Canada.

Objective: To determine the current practice and opinions of paediatric intensivists in Canada regarding tracheostomy in children with potentially reversible conditions which are anticipated to require prolonged mechanical ventilation.

Design And Setting: Self-administered survey among paediatric intensivists within paediatrics critical care units (PCCU) across Canada.

Measurements And Results: All 16 PCCUs participated in the survey with a response rate of 81% (63 physicians).

Compliance assessment in drug trials: has there been improvement in two decades?

Background: Compliance is a key element in the success of therapy, both in practice and research. A study from 1974 demonstrated that compliance in clinical trials was only determined in 19% of studies requiring it.

Objectives: The objective was to determine if there has been an improvement in compliance assessment in clinical trials.

Where physicians look for information on drug prescribing for children.

Background: Despite the important role of drug therapy in children, there is often a lack of readily available information regarding the indications and dosing regimens for medications in paediatrics.

Objective: To collect data on where family physicians obtain this prescribing information.

Method: A structured questionnaire was mailed to 500 family physicians in Ontario.