Deciphering the Longevity and Levels of SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in Children: A Year-Long Study Highlighting Clinical Phenotypes and Age-Related Variations.

Background: Identifying potential factors correlated with the sustained presence of antibodies in plasma may facilitate improved retrospective diagnoses and aid in the appraisal of pertinent vaccination strategies for various demographic groups. The main objective was to describe the persistence of anti-spike IgG one year after diagnosis in children and analyse its levels in relation to epidemiological and clinical variables.

Methods: A prospective, longitudinal, observational study was conducted in a university reference hospital in the Metropolitan Region of Barcelona (Spain) (March 2020-May 2021).

COVID-19 admissions: Trying to define the real impact of infection in hospitalized patients.

Introduction And Objective: Several studies have suggested that the hospitalization rate for COVID-19 in children and adolescents may reflect the prevalence of the infection rather than the severity of the disease. The aim of this study was to describe the clinical features of hospitalised paediatric patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection in order to understand if the infection was the reason for admission.

Methods: Retrospective cohort study including patients aged 0-18 years with SARS-CoV-2 infection or multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) admitted to a tertiary care children's hospital in Spain between 01/01/2020 and 12/31/2021.

Home hospitalization of the acute patient: a new approach to care.

Pediatric hospitalization at home (HAH) aims to provide the patient and his family with an alternative to conventional hospitalization, safely and effectively, improving the quality of life of the patient and his family. The most frequent pathologies in HAH in pediatric acute patients are acute respiratory pathology and bacterial infections that require parenteral antibiotic therapy. The success of an acute patient home hospitalization program relies on the proper selection of patients and exhaustive training of caregivers, as well as good communication and coordination between the different services and levels of care involved.

Characteristics and Risk Factors Associated with SARS-CoV-2 Pneumonias in Hospitalized Pediatric Patients: A Pilot Study.

SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia in children has a lower incidence and severity compared to adults. Risk factors are adolescence and comorbidities. Our aims were to describe the characteristics of children admitted with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia, identify risk factors associated with severity and compare the cases according to the variant of SARS-CoV-2.

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) and sepsis differentiation by a clinical and analytical score: MISSEP score.

Differential diagnosis between Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) and other causes of systemic inflammatory response such as sepsis is complex. The aims were to evaluate the differences between pediatric patients with MIS-C and sepsis and to develop a score to distinguish both entities. This was a retrospective study that compared demographic, clinical, diagnostic, and therapeutic data of pediatric patients with MIS-C (cohort 2020-2022) and sepsis (cohorts 2010-2014 and 2017-2018) admitted to a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) of a tertiary care hospital.

Association between soluble angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 in saliva and SARS-CoV-2 infection: a cross-sectional study.

This study aimed to investigate the association between saliva soluble angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (sACE2) and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in children and adults. We selected a convenience sample of adults with post-acute SARS-CoV-2 infection and their household children living in quarantined family households of the metropolitan Barcelona region (Spain) during the spring 2020 pandemic national lockdown. Participants were tested for saliva sACE2 quantification by western blot and nasopharyngeal SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR detection.

SARS-CoV-2 transmission in teenagers and young adults in Fútbol Club Barcelona's Multidisciplinary Sports Training Academy.

Most studies, aimed at determining the incidence and transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in children and teenagers, have been developed in school settings. Our study conducted surveillance and inferred attack rates focusing on the practice of sports. Prospective and observational study of those attending the sports facilities of Fútbol Club Barcelona (FCB), in Barcelona, Spain, throughout the 2020-2021 season.

Attending pediatric acutely ill patients at home: families' socioeconomic characterization, expectations, and experiences.

Background: SJD a Casa is an acute pediatric hospital-at-home program that was initiated in 2019. For a thorough understanding of acute pediatric homecare programs, an analysis of all related factors, including the medical, social, and economic aspects as well as the family's experience, is essential. However, no previous study has attempted a comprehensive evaluation of this topic in relation to a complex program such as ours (in terms of the diseases and treatments offered).

Safety and effectiveness of bubble continuous positive airway pressure as respiratory support for bronchiolitis in a pediatric ward.

Unlabelled: The results of several clinical trials suggest that continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) for acute bronchiolitis can be more effective than high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC). The use of HFNC involved a minimum reduction (5%) in admissions to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) in our hospital. Our main aim was to evaluate its safety and effectiveness as respiratory support for patients with bronchiolitis in a pediatric general ward.

Using a route planner to optimize door-to-door visits for a pediatric home-hospitalization program: Feasibility study.

Background: Hospital Sant Joan de Déu (Barcelona) initiated a pediatric acute home-hospitalization program. Due to high patient turnover and the health staff's lack of planning training, daily scheduling was a time-consuming task. Home-hospitalization planning is a vehicle routing problem that can be solved with a technological solution.

Individual prevention and containment measures in schools in Catalonia, Spain, and community transmission of SARS-CoV-2 after school re-opening.

Background: Despite their clear lesser vulnerability to COVID-19, the extent by which children are susceptible to getting infected by SARS-CoV-2 and their capacity to transmit the infection to other people remains inadequately characterized. We aimed to evaluate the role of school reopening and the preventive strategies in place at schools in terms of overall risk for children and community transmission, by comparing transmission rates in children as detected by a COVID-19 surveillance platform in place in Catalonian Schools to the incidence at the community level.

Methods And Findings: Infections detected in Catalan schools during the entire first trimester of classes (September-December 2020) were analysed and compared with the ongoing community transmission and with the modelled predicted number of infections.

Necrotizing pneumonia due to Streptococcus pneumoniae in children during the period of non-systematic use of PCV13 in Catalonia, Spain.

Background: Some studies have observed an increased incidence of necrotizing pneumonia (NP) in recent years. This might be related to the emergence of non-vaccine S. pneumoniae serotypes after PCV7 introduction although it is suggested that evolutionary factors may have modified the virulence and the interactions of pneumococci.

Rapid Increase of Oral Bacteria in Nasopharyngeal Microbiota After Antibiotic Treatment in Children With Invasive Pneumococcal Disease.

Introduction: Antibiotics are commonly prescribed to young children for treating bacterial infections such as invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) caused by . Despite the obvious benefits of antibiotics, little is known about their possible side effects on children's nasopharyngeal microbiota. In other ecological niches, antibiotics have been described to perturb the balanced microbiota with short- and long-term effects on children's health.

Differential nasopharyngeal microbiota composition in children according to respiratory health status.

Acute respiratory infections (ARIs) constitute one of the leading causes of antibiotic administration, hospitalization and death among children <5 years old. The upper respiratory tract microbiota has been suggested to explain differential susceptibility to ARIs and modulate ARI severity. The aim of the present study was to investigate the relation of nasopharyngeal microbiota and other microbiological parameters with respiratory health and disease, and to assess nasopharyngeal microbiota diagnostic utility for discriminating between different respiratory health statuses.

Invasive pneumococcal disease in children under 60 months before and after availability of 13-valent conjugate vaccine.

Background: Invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) is the most important bacterial infection in young children, and the introduction of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines has changed its presentation. This study compared the incidence, characteristics and serotype distribution of IPD before and after the introduction of the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13).

Methods: Prospective enrolment of patients with IPD aged less than 60 months and admitted to either of 2 tertiary care hospitals between January 2007 and December 2009 (pre-PCV13 period) and January 2012 and June-2016 (PCV13 period).

[Invasive pneumococcal disease in children under 60 months before and after availability of 13-valent conjugate vaccine].

Background: Invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) is the most important bacterial infection in young children, and the introduction of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines has changed its presentation. This study compared the incidence, characteristics and serotype distribution of IPD before and after the introduction of the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13).

Methods: Prospective enrolment of patients with IPD aged less than 60 months and admitted to either of 2 tertiary care hospitals between January 2007 and December 2009 (pre-PCV13 period) and January 2012 and June-2016 (PCV13 period).

Similarities and differences between the immunopathogenesis of COVID-19-related pediatric multisystem inflammatory syndrome and Kawasaki disease.

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome associated with the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has recently been described in children (MIS-C), partially overlapping with Kawasaki disease (KD). We hypothesized that (a) MIS-C and prepandemic KD cytokine profiles may be unique and justify the clinical differences observed, and (b) SARS-CoV-2-specific immune complexes (ICs) may explain the immunopathology of MIS-C. Seventy-four children were included: 14 with MIS-C, 9 patients positive for SARS-CoV-2 by PCR without MIS-C (COVID), 14 with prepandemic KD, and 37 healthy controls (HCs).

Susceptibility to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Infection Among Children and Adults: A Seroprevalence Study of Family Households in the Barcelona Metropolitan Region, Spain.

Background: Susceptibility of children and adults to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and persistence of antibody response to the virus after infection resolution remain poorly understood, despite their significant public health implications.

Methods: A prospective cross-sectional seroprevalence study with volunteer families that included at least 1 first-reported adult case positive by SARS-CoV-2 by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and at least 1 child aged <15 years living in the same household under strict home confinement was conducted in the metropolitan Barcelona Health Region, Spain, during the pandemic period 28 April 2020-3 June 2020. All household members were tested at home using a rapid SARS-CoV-2 antibody assay with finger prick-obtained capillary blood.

Necrotizing pneumonia due to Streptococcus pneumoniae in children during the period of non-systematic use of PCV13 in Catalonia, Spain.

Background: Some studies have observed an increased incidence of necrotizing pneumonia (NP) in recent years. This might be related to the emergence of non-vaccine S. pneumoniae serotypes after PCV7 introduction although it is suggested that evolutionary factors may have modified the virulence and the interactions of pneumococci.