Obesity as a risk factor for severe influenza infection in children and adolescents: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Unlabelled: Obesity has been recently identified as a predisposing factor for a worse prognosis in viral illnesses such as SARS-CoV-2; however, its role in children with influenza is not yet clarified. The current systematic review and meta-analysis aims to assess whether obesity is a risk factor for either hospitalization or a worse prognosis when hospitalized among children infected by influenza. We systematically searched the following databases using a structured algorithm: MEDLINE, Clinicaltrials.

Atypical food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome in children: Is IgE sensitisation an issue longitudinally?

Background: Food Protein-Induced Enterocolitis Syndrome (FPIES) is a clinically well-characterised, non-Immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated food allergy syndrome, yet its rare atypical presentation remains poorly understood.

Objective: Aim of this study was to present the 10-year experience of a referral centre highlighting the atypical FPIES cases and their long-term outcome.

Methods: FPIES cases were prospectively evaluated longitudinally in respect of food outgrowth and developing other allergic diseases with or without concomitant IgE sensitisation.

Update on current views and advances on RSV infection (Review).

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection represents an excellent paradigm of precision medicine in modern paediatrics and several clinical trials are currently performed in the prevention and management of RSV infection. A new taxonomic terminology for RSV was recently adopted, while the diagnostic and omics techniques have revealed new modalities in the early identification of RSV infections and for better understanding of the disease pathogenesis. Coordinated clinical and research efforts constitute an important step in limiting RSV global predominance, improving epidemiological surveillance, and advancing neonatal and paediatric care.

A Rare Case of Measles-Associated Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis in an Infant.

Measles continues to be a threat in most European countries due to suboptimum vaccination coverage. Although measles leads to several complications, measles-related hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) has been rarely reported. Herein, we present a case of a four-month-old male infant, the first child of unrelated, healthy parents, with no significant medical history or unexplained infant death in the family, otherwise healthy, who was diagnosed with measles-associated HLH and was successfully treated with IV dexamethasone and IV immunoglobulin (IVIG).

Evolution of Airway Inflammation in Preschoolers with Asthma-Results of a Two-Year Longitudinal Study.

Fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) is a non-invasive marker for eosinophilic airway inflammation and has been used for monitoring asthma. Here, we assess the characteristics of FeNO from preschool to school age, in parallel with asthma activity. A total of 167 asthmatic children and 66 healthy, age-matched controls were included in the 2-year prospective PreDicta study evaluating wheeze/asthma persistence in preschool-aged children.

A paediatric influenza update 100 years after the Skyros island Spanish flu outbreak.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the 1918 Spanish flu outbreak on the Greek Aegean Sea island of Skyros, which devastated its population in less than 30 days. According to Constantinos Faltaits's annals published in 1919, the influenza attack on the island of Skyros commenced acutely 'like a thunderbolt' on the 27th of October, 1918 and was exceptionally severe and fatal. At that time, the viral cause of the influenza had not been detected, while the total number of victims of the Spanish flu outbreak has been estimated to have surpassed 50 million, worldwide.

Paediatric Virology and its interaction between basic science and clinical practice (Review).

The 3rd Workshop on Paediatric Virology, which took place on October 7th, 2017 in Athens, Greece, highlighted the role of breast feeding in the prevention of viral infections during the first years of life. Moreover, it focused on the long-term outcomes of respiratory syncytial virus and rhinovirus infections in prematurely born infants and emphasised the necessity for the development of relevant preventative strategies. Other topics that were covered included the vaccination policy in relation to the migration crisis, mother‑to‑child transmission of hepatitis B and C viruses, vaccination against human papilloma viruses in boys and advances on intranasal live‑attenuated vaccination against influenza.