Cranial ultrasound and neurophysiological testing to predict neurological outcome in infants born very preterm.

Aim: Infants born preterm are at risk of cerebral palsy (CP) and motor or cognitive developmental delay. For clinicians, it is essential to know the relative predictive accuracy of the most commonly used neuroimaging and neurophysiological tests for the early prediction of adverse neurodevelopmental outcome. The aim of this study was to compare the accuracy of these tests in survivors of a population of infants born very preterm.

Emergence of livestock-associated MRSA isolated from cystic fibrosis patients: Result of a Belgian national survey.

Background: This study aims to determine the prevalence and characteristics of Staphylococcus aureus in Belgian cystic fibrosis (CF) patients.

Methods: Non-duplicate respiratory samples from 510 CF-patients (2012-2013) were examined. One isolate per patient was analysed unless different phenotypes were recovered.

Epidemic Achromobacter xylosoxidans strain among Belgian cystic fibrosis patients and review of literature.

Background: Achromobacter xylosoxidans is increasingly being recognized as an emerging pathogen in cystic fibrosis. Recent severe infections with A. xylosoxidans in some of our cystic fibrosis (CF) patients led to a re-evaluation of the epidemiology of CF-associated A.

Endothelial progenitor cells and endothelial microparticles are independent predictors of endothelial function.

Objective: To examine the degree of microvascular endothelial dysfunction in relation to classical cardiovascular risk factors, arterial stiffness, and numbers of circulating endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) and endothelial microparticles (EMPs), in obese and normal-weight children.

Study Design: Cross-sectional study with 57 obese (15.2±1.

Achromobacter xylosoxidans induced bronchiolitis obliterans in cystic fibrosis.

We report a 12-year-old boy with progressive bronchiolitis obliterans caused by Achromobacter xylosoxidans (Ax) colonization after liver transplantation, resulting in a steep decline in lung function.

Metabolic disregulation in obese adolescents with sleep-disordered breathing before and after weight loss.

Objective: Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is prevalent in obesity. Weight loss is one of the most effective treatment options. The aim was to assess the association of SDB and metabolic disruption before and after weight loss.

Weight loss and sleep-disordered breathing in childhood obesity: effects on inflammation and uric acid.

Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is prevalent in childhood obesity. It may be an independent risk factor for the metabolic syndrome. Possible mechanisms are inflammation and oxidative stress.

The effect of weight loss on sleep-disordered breathing in obese teenagers.

The objective of this study was to assess the effect of weight loss on sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) in obese teenagers attending a residential treatment center. We also assessed whether the presence of SDB at the start of the weight management therapy was correlated with the amount of weight loss achieved. Obese teenagers were recruited and underwent anthropometry and sleep screening.

The role of acceptance in psychological functioning in adolescents with cystic fibrosis: a preliminary study.

This study explored the role of acceptance in accounting for the heterogeneity in psychological functioning in adolescents suffering from cystic fibrosis. Thirty-four adolescents completed a battery of questionnaires assessing acceptance, anxiety, depression, and disability. Regression analyses revealed that acceptance had a significant and unique contribution in explaining adolescents' anxiety, depression, and disability beyond the effects of demographic variables and parameters of disease severity.

Predictors of 6-minute walk test and 12-minute walk/run test in obese children and adolescents.

Unlabelled: The purpose of this study was to identify predictors of the distance achieved during a 6-minute walk test and a 12-minute walk/run test (Cooper test) in obese children and adolescents and to evaluate the influence of a residential treatment on the association of these predictors with the distance. A search of the Revalidation Centre Zeepreventorium (De Haan, Belgium) medical records database of all children and adolescents (age 10 to 18 yrs) treated for obesity between September 2003 and February 2006, revealed 65 charts with all relevant data (anthropometrical, maximal graded exercise, lung function, 6-minute walk test and 12-minute walk/run test) at admission as well as after 3 months treatment. The multidisciplinary treatment has a positive influence on anthropometrical variables, endurance capacity, vital capacity, and residual volume (p < 0.

National survey of molecular epidemiology of Staphylococcus aureus colonization in Belgian cystic fibrosis patients.

Objectives: Epidemiology of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is poorly defined in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients, and S. aureus detection may be hampered by the presence of small colony variants (SCVs). We conducted a multicentre survey to determine the prevalence of S.

Role of magnesium in the failure of rhDNase therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis.

Background: In the management of cystic fibrosis (CF), rhDNase-I inhalation is widely used to facilitate the removal of the highly viscous and elastic mucus (often called sputum) from the lungs. However, an important group of CF patients does not benefit from rhDNase-I treatment. A study was undertaken to elucidate the reason for the failure of rhDNase-I in these patients and to evaluate strategies to overcome this.

Shared genotypes of Achromobacter xylosoxidans strains isolated from patients at a cystic fibrosis rehabilitation center.

During a study examining transmission of Pseudomonas aeruginosa among 76 cystic fibrosis patients in a rehabilitation center, where patients stay in close contact during prolonged periods, several clusters of patients carrying genotypically identical P. aeruginosa, as well as two clusters of 4 and 10 patients, respectively, colonized with genotypically identical Achromobacter xylosoxidans strains, were discovered.

Epidemiology of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in a cystic fibrosis rehabilitation centre.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is the leading pathogen in cystic fibrosis (CF) lungs. Since there is great concern about clonal spread in CF centres, this study examined the P. aeruginosa genotypes of colonised residents of a CF rehabilitation centre.

Inpatient treatment of obese children: a multicomponent programme without stringent calorie restriction.

Unlabelled: This prospective clinical case-control study describes the effect of an inpatient multicomponent treatment programme for obese children and adolescents on their weight and psychological well being. We studied 38 patients and 38 controls on the waiting list, matched for age and gender, referred because of obesity, with a median age of 13 years (range 10-17 years) and a median adjusted body mass index (BMI) of 173% (range 130%-257%). The treatment consisted of a 10-month inpatient programme focussing on attaining a healthy lifestyle by increasing physical activity and offering a healthy diet within a cognitive-behavioural framework.

Inhaled steroids compared with disodium cromoglycate in preschool children with episodic viral wheeze.

In school children with atopic asthma the beneficial effects of disodium cromoglycate (DSCG) and beclomethasone dipropionate (BDP) are well-established. In preschool children, wheezing is quite common, and in the majority of cases the symptoms are episodic and reported to be associated with viral infections rather than atopy. We compared the efficacy of regular treatment with DSCG and BDP for prevention of wheezing in preschool children.

Burkholderia (Pseudomonas) cepacia and cystic fibrosis: the epidemiology in Belgium.

Burkholderia cepacia has become an increasingly recognized pathogen among cystic fibrosis (CF) patients and its potential role in declining pulmonary function or unexpected fatal outcome has caused widespread concern. Direct person-to-person transmission has been documented and a segregation policy of CF patients colonized with B.cepacia from non-colonized CF patients is widely adopted.

Effect of administration of gamma-linolenic acid on the fatty acid composition of serum phospholipids and cholesteryl esters in patients with cystic fibrosis.

This study examined the effects of supplementing patients with cystic fibrosis daily for 4 weeks with 1,500 mg borage oil, containing 330 mg gamma-linolenic acid, on the fatty acid composition of serum phospholipids (PL) and cholesteryl esters (CE). Vital capacity and forced expiratory volume in 1 s were also measured before and after treatment. In serum PL the content of arachidonic acid (AA) increased and that of palmitic acid decreased significantly after borage oil administration.

Increase of long chain omega-3 fatty acids in the major serum lipid classes of patients with cystic fibrosis.

We studied the effects of supplementing patients with cystic fibrosis for 1 month with 3 g/day of a dietary supplement, containing 911 mg omega 3 fatty acids, on the fatty acid composition of serum cholesterol esters, free fatty acids, phospholipids and triglycerides. At the end of the supplementation period, the content of total omega 3 fatty acids was increased significantly in all lipid classes. The effect on individual omega 3 fatty acids depended on the fatty acid and lipid class studied, increased with the dose fed and decreased with the weight of the patient.

Immune complexes and Pseudomonas aeruginosa antibodies in cystic fibrosis.

Serum samples from 57 patients with cystic fibrosis were tested for the presence of IgG, IgA, IgM, IgE, and circulating immune complexes containing IgG, IgA, and IgM. Titres of class specific antibodies to Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and class specific antibodies to Ps aeruginosa in circulating immune complexes, were also measured. According to the Shwachman score the patients were divided into three clinical groups: group 1-moderate and severe disease, group 2-mild disease, and group 3-well.

[The effect of swimming on the nasal passages and on tube function in children].

In two studies the authors want to confirm experimentally what is assumed in every day ENT-practice: otitis and sinusitis are not infrequent complications of swimming. The first study, involving 60 children with chronic non-specific lung diseases shows that swimming in a sea water pool increases the nasal airway resistance during two days. In the second study, performed in 32 normal children swimming in a chlorous pool, a negative relationship is found between the number of days after the swimming and the increased nasal airway resistance.