Hepcidin in newly diagnosed inflammatory bowel disease in children.

Aim: Hepcidin is a central regulator of iron homeostasis. Its production is also influenced by systemic inflammation. The aims of this study were to compare hepcidin levels in paediatric patients newly diagnosed with Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) and to determine the association of hepcidin levels with laboratory and clinical parameters of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) activity.

Bone marrow metastasis of malignant melanoma in childhood arising within a congenital melanocytic nevus.

Background: Malignant melanoma in childhood is infrequent and can arise within congenital melanocytic nevi. Spread of malignant melanoma to the bone marrow, especially in children, is extremely rare.

Methods And Results: Reported is a case of a 5-year-old boy with a congenital large melanocytic nevus of the head and neck who presented with a short history of low back and leg pain, fever and cervical lymphadenopathy.

Characterization of iron metabolism and erythropoiesis in erythrocyte membrane defects and thalassemia traits.

Background And Aims: Erythropoiesis is closely related to iron metabolism in a balanced homeostasis. Analyses of diverse erythroid and iron metabolism disorders have shown that disrupted erythropoiesis negatively affects iron homeostasis and vice versa. The aim of this study was to characterize the relationship between erythropoietic activity and iron homeostasis in pediatric patients with erythrocyte membrane defects and thalassemia traits.

[Case report - pediatric visceral leishmaniasis].

The diagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is not an easy task. The clinical presentation of VL is similar to lymphomas which have significantly higher incidence in our country. This fact is one of the complications in the diagnosis of VL.