Use of Procalcitonin Assays to Predict Serious Bacterial Infection in Young Febrile Infants.

Importance: The procalcitonin (PCT) assay is an accurate screening test for identifying invasive bacterial infection (IBI); however, data on the PCT assay in very young infants are insufficient.

Objective: To assess the diagnostic characteristics of the PCT assay for detecting serious bacterial infection (SBI) and IBI in febrile infants aged 7 to 91 days.

Design, Setting, And Participants: A prospective cohort study that included infants aged 7 to 91 days admitted for fever to 15 French pediatric emergency departments was conducted for a period of 30 months (October 1, 2008, through March 31, 2011).

Major bile duct injuries during cholecystectomy in children: conservative laparoscopic approach is possible.

Major bile duct injury is an inherent complication in cases of both open and laparoscopic cholecystectomies. In case of choledochal lesion, conservative treatment or internal derivation by a Roux-en-Y can be proposed. We report the case of a 5-year-old boy referred to our center for an iatrogenic choledochal ligation after open cholecystectomy (performed 20 d before) for asymptomatic gallbladder stone.

Endoscopic injection with polydimethylsiloxane for the treatment of pediatric urinary incontinence in the neurogenic bladder: long-term results.

Purpose: We report the long-term results of endoscopic injection of PDMS in correcting urinary incontinence in children with neurogenic bladder.

Materials And Methods: We performed a single center, retrospective study of patients receiving endoscopic injections of PDMS. All procedures were performed as outpatient surgery using endoscopic guidance.

[Contralateral transinguinal laparoscopy in unilateral inguinal hernia].

Background: Indication for surgical exploration of the contralateral groin during unilateral herniorraphy in children is the subject of a worldwide debate. Routine exploration based on the likelihood of a patent processus vaginalis (PV) according to age, gender or side to some extent leads to unnecessary procedures, while routine abstention may leave a peritoneal sac, likely to later induce a symptomatic hernia in about 10% of cases.

Methods And Patients: One hundred and twenty-five children aged from 1 month to 15 years underwent transinguinal laparoscopic assessment of the contralateral groin, using a 3 mm trocar and a 70 degrees telescope gently introduced through the exposed PV.