Correction: Internalizing problems are associated with oral health-related quality of life in early childhood: Outcomes from an Asian multi-ethnic prospective birth cohort.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.

Sensitive LC-MS/MS method for the temporal profiling of bile acids, fatty acids and branched-chain alpha-keto acids in maternal plasma during pregnancy and cord blood plasma at delivery.

Background And Aims: There are significant changes to the maternal inflammatory profile across pregnancy. Recent studies suggest that perturbations in maternal gut microbial and dietary-derived plasma metabolites over the course of pregnancy mediate inflammation through a complex interplay of immunomodulatory effects. Despite this body of evidence, there is currently no analytical method that is suitable for the simultaneous profiling of these metabolites within human plasma.

Mid-pregnancy and postpartum maternal mental health and infant sleep in the first year of life.

Perinatal depression and anxiety are common and associated with sleep problems in the offspring. Depression and anxiety are commonly comorbid, yet often studied independently. Our study used an integrative measure of anxiety and depressive symptoms to examine the associations of maternal mental health (mid-pregnancy and postnatal) with infant sleep during the first year of life.

Evaluation of Stool Short Chain Fatty Acids Profiles in the First Year of Life With Childhood Atopy-Related Outcomes.

Introduction: Short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) are the main intestinal intermediate and end products of metabolism of dietary fibers/polyphenols by the gut microbiota. The aim of this study was to evaluate the biological implication of stool SCFA profiles determined in the first year of life on the clinical presentation of allergic outcomes in childhood.

Methods: From the Growing Up in Singapore Toward healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) cohort, a sub-cohort of 75 participants was recruited.

24-hour movement behaviour profiles and their transition in children aged 5.5 and 8 years - findings from a prospective cohort study.

Background: Time spent in movement behaviours, including physical activity (PA), sedentary behaviour (SB) and sleep, across the 24-h day may have distinct health consequences. We aimed to describe 24-h movement behaviour (24 h-MB) profiles in children and how profile membership changed from age 5.5 to 8 years.

Association between breastfeeding and sleep patterns in infants and preschool children.

Background: Although most studies have reported unfavorable short-term effects of breastfeeding on early-childhood sleep-wake behaviors that potentially attenuate over time, findings have remained inconsistent.

Objectives: We assessed associations of breastfeeding with longitudinal day-, night-, and total-sleep trajectories and with sleep-wake behaviors in healthy infants and preschoolers.

Methods: Caregivers of naturally conceived, term, singleton infants (n = 654) completed the Brief Infant Sleep Questionnaire (3, 6, 9, 12, 18, and 24 mo) and/or Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (54 mo), and provided information on their infants' breastfeeding status at 3 mo.

Internalizing problems are associated with oral health-related quality of life in early childhood: Outcomes from an Asian multi-ethnic prospective birth cohort.

Oral health status ideally warrants for a holistic biopsychosocial approach to health and wellness. Little is known about the impact of behavioral problems on oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) in children due to the paucity of studies in early childhood, particularly in Asian multi-ethnic populations. This study evaluated the relationship between early child's socioemotional factors and OHRQoL, as well as its association with orofacial pain (OFP) and early childhood caries (ECC) in the Asian GUSTO birth cohort.

Multiple modifiable lifestyle factors and the risk of perinatal depression during pregnancy: Findings from the GUSTO cohort.

Background: Studies have identified lifestyle risk factors for perinatal depression, but none have examined the cumulative effect of these risk factors in pregnant women.

Methods: We considered the following six factors during pregnancy: poor diet quality (Healthy eating index for Singapore pregnant women 5), physical inactivity (<600 MET-minutes/week), vitamin D insufficiency (<50 nmol/l), smoking before or during pregnancy, and the perceived need for social support. Probable depression was assessed using the Edinburgh postnatal depression scale during pregnancy (>15) and at three months postpartum (≥13).

A compromised developmental trajectory of the infant gut microbiome and metabolome in atopic eczema.

Evidence is accumulating that the establishment of the gut microbiome in early life influences the development of atopic eczema. In this longitudinal study, we used integrated multi-omics analyses to infer functional mechanisms by which the microbiome modulates atopic eczema risk. We measured the functionality of the gut microbiome and metabolome of 63 infants between ages 3 weeks and 12 months with well-defined eczema cases and controls in a sub-cohort from the Growing Up in Singapore Toward healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) mother-offspring cohort.

Severity of nausea and vomiting in pregnancy and early childhood neurobehavioural outcomes: The Growing Up in Singapore Towards Healthy Outcomes study.

Background: Nausea and vomiting of pregnancy (NVP) affects 50 to 80 per cent of women. The existing literature has examined NVP from the perspective of the mother, and relatively less is known about offspring outcomes.

Objectives: To study the relationships of NVP with social-emotional, behavioural, and cognitive outcomes of the offspring in a multi-ethnic Asian cohort.

Maternal glycemia during pregnancy and offspring abdominal adiposity measured by MRI in the neonatal period and preschool years: The Growing Up in Singapore Towards healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) prospective mother-offspring birth cohort study.

Background: Gestational diabetes is associated with unfavorable body fat distribution in offspring. However, less is known about the effects across the range of maternal gestational glycemia on offspring abdominal adiposity (AA) in infancy and early childhood.

Objectives: This study determined the association between gestational glycemia and offspring AA measured by MRI in the neonatal period and during the preschool years.

Validation of the Children's Eating Behavior Questionnaire in 5 and 6 Year-Old Children: The GUSTO Cohort Study.

Revised subscales of the Children's Eating Behavior Questionnaire (CEBQ) have been proposed to be more appropriate for assessing appetitive traits in Singaporean 3 year-olds, but the CEBQ has not yet been validated in older children in this population. The current study aimed to validate the CEBQ at ages 5 ( = 653) and 6 ( = 449) in the ethnically diverse GUSTO cohort. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) examined whether the established eight-factor model of the CEBQ was supported in this sample.

Relation of plasma tryptophan concentrations during pregnancy to maternal sleep and mental well-being: The GUSTO cohort.

Background: Evidence suggests a relation between plasma tryptophan concentrations and sleep and mental well-being. As no studies have been performed in pregnant women, we studied the relation of plasma tryptophan concentrations during pregnancy with sleep quality, and mood during and after pregnancy.

Methods: Pregnant women (n = 572) from the Growing Up in Singapore Towards healthy Outcomes study completed the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) at 26-28 weeks gestation and three months post-delivery.

High folate and low vitamin B12 status during pregnancy is associated with gestational diabetes mellitus.

Background & Aims: B-vitamins and homocysteine may contribute to the development of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), but existing studies are inconsistent. We examined the cross-sectional associations of plasma folate, vitamins B6, B12, and homocysteine concentrations with GDM and glycemia in a sample of multi-ethnic Asian pregnant women.

Methods: Plasma concentrations of folate, vitamins B6, B12, homocysteine and glucose were measured at 26-weeks' gestation in 913 pregnant women.

Rhinitis in the first 18 months of life: exploring the role of respiratory viruses.

Background: Rhinitis is common in early childhood, but allergic rhinitis is considered a later manifestation of the atopic march. This study aimed to evaluate rhinitis (allergic and non-allergic) in the first 18 months of life, its link with other atopic manifestations and the role of respiratory viruses.

Methods: Subjects (n = 1237) of the Singapore GUSTO birth cohort were followed up quarterly until 18 months of age with questionnaires to screen for rhinitis symptoms lasting at least 2 wk and with monthly calls to positive subjects to detect prolonged/recurrent rhinitis symptoms (total duration ≥ 4 wk).

Intra-articular glucocorticoid injections in patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis in a Singapore hospital.

Introduction: This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of intra-articular glucocorticoid (IAG) injections in our institution in children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA).

Methods: This is a retrospective assessment of IAG injections performed by the Department of Paediatrics, National University Hospital, Singapore, from October 2009 to October 2011. A total of 26 procedures were evaluated for efficacy, considering parameters such as clinical response, changes in systemic medication, length of time between repeat injections, safety, consent-taking, pre- and post-procedural advice, compliance with aseptic technique, and post-procedural complications.

Anaphylaxis to cow's milk formula containing short-chain galacto-oligosaccharide.

Background: On the basis of the proven prebiotic effects of oligosaccharides in cow's milk formula (CMF) in infants, CMFs are supplemented with oligosaccharides.

Objective: We present a series of 5 cases of cow's milk-tolerant but atopic patients with a history of respiratory allergies. All had anaphylaxis after the ingestion of CMF supplemented with short-chain galacto-oligosaccharide (scGOS).

Compliance with topical nasal medication--an evaluation in children with rhinitis.

It is our impression that children with rhinitis often dislike or struggle with the administration of topical nasal sprays and drops. This study aims to investigate children's acceptance of topical nasal sprays/drops, and to identify patient factors that may affect their acceptance. An interview (by WYZI) questionnaire survey was carried out on parents/guardians of children aged 1-15 with rhinitis, where information on the diagnosis and treatment, patients' use and responses to these medications, and their preferred treatment routes were collected.

Comparative analysis of fecal microbiota in infants with and without eczema.

Eczema is a chronic form of childhood disorder that is gaining in prevalence in affluent societies. Previous studies hypothesized that the development of eczema is correlated with changes in microbial profile and composition of early life endemic microbiota, but contradictory conclusions were obtained, possibly due to the lack of minimization of apparent non-health related confounders (e.g.

Epinephrine auto-injector prescriptions as a reflection of the pattern of anaphylaxis in an Asian population.

This study surveyed the prescription patterns of adrenaline auto-injectors (AAs) in Singapore to examine the frequency, triggers, and demographic pattern of anaphylaxis requiring such prescriptions. A 6-year retrospective review of 417 consecutive patients prescribed AAs in Singapore from January 1999 to December 2004, as identified from hospital pharmacy records. There were 417 patients identified, consisting of 295 (70.

Eosinophil cationic protein: is it useful in asthma? A systematic review.

Introduction: Eosinophil cationic protein (ECP) has been widely investigated as a potential biomarker of airway inflammation.

Method: A systematic review was performed using Medline with key terms eosinophil cationic protein and asthma, limiting the search to titles or abstracts. Out of 688 potential papers found, abstracts were reviewed based on the following criteria: (1) ECP was used as a biological marker, (2) asthma was the index disease studied, (3) it was a controlled clinical study and (4) ECP was assessed as a diagnostic, assessment or management tool.

Cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene mutations in Asians with chronic pulmonary disease: a pilot study.

Background: Little is known about the relationship between cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene mutations in Asian patients and severe asthma or idiopathic bronchiectasis. We investigated this potential relationship in the Singaporean Chinese.

Methods: Twenty patients with chronic pulmonary disease, 14 with severe asthma and 6 with idiopathic bronchiectasis, were screened for CFTR mutations by direct gene sequencing.

Viewpoint: are doctors responsible for the increase in allergic diseases?

There is no exact explanation for the increase in allergic diseases that occurred since the last two decades. An increased allergen exposure and/or a decreased bacterial load cannot explain the phenomenon completely. Other causal factors that rose at the beginning of the 1980s must be taken into consideration.

Determination of food specific IgE levels over time can predict the development of tolerance in cow's milk and hen's egg allergy.

Background: The majority of children with cow's milk and hen's egg allergy develop clinical tolerance with time. However, there are no good indices to predict when and in whom this occurs.

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine if monitoring food specific IgE levels over time could be used as a predictor for determining when patients develop clinical tolerance.