Aluminum toxicity in neonatal parenteral nutrition: what can we do?

Aluminum toxicity has been described in patients of all ages who are receiving a variety of therapies, including dialysis, phosphate-binding medications, and parenteral nutrition (PN). Neonates are at an increased risk of aluminum toxicity because of anatomic, physiologic, and nutrition-related factors not present in other populations. In 2004, the Food and Drug Administration recommended restricting daily aluminum administration to 5 μg/kg/day and now requires that additives used to compound PN have the maximum aluminum content at expiration listed on the product label.

Pancreatic enzyme supplementation.

Purpose Of Review: In 2010, the Food and Drug Administration required manufacturers of pancreatic enzymes replacement therapy (PERT) to have approval for marketing, rescinding the distribution of PERT that had been available for decades without definitive studies of efficacy and safety. Therefore, many patients on PERT had to change preparation in the last year and be placed on new formulations of PERT or switched to a new branded product altogether. This review summarizes the clinical data on these new products and reviews their general use.

Rufinamide for pediatric patients with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome: a comprehensive overview.

Rufinamide is a triazole derivative with broad-spectrum antiepileptic effects that is unrelated to any antiepileptic drug currently on the market. The European Commission and the US FDA approved rufinamide in 2007 and 2008, respectively, for adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome in children 4 years of age or older and adults. The mechanism of action of rufinamide is not completely understood but it is believed to prolong the inactive state of sodium channels, therefore limiting excessive firing of sodium-dependent action potentials.

Sensitivity and selectivity of intraneural stimulation using a silicon electrode array.

Artificial electrical stimulation of peripheral nerves needs the development of multielectrode devices which stimulate individual fibers or small groups in a selective and sensitive way. To this end, a multielectrode array in silicon technology has been developed, as well as experimental paradigms and model calculations for sensitivity and selectivity measures. The array consists of twelve platinum electrode sites (10 x 50 microns at 50 microns interdistance) on a 45 microns thick tip-shaped silicon substrate and a Si3N4 insulating glass cover layer.