Safety of Rotavirus Vaccination in Preterm Infants Admitted in Neonatal Intensive Care Units in Sicily, Italy: A Multicenter Observational Study.

Rotavirus (RV) is among the most common vaccine-preventable diseases in children under five years of age. Despite the severity of rotavirus pathology in early childhood, rotavirus vaccination for children admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), who are often born preterm and with various previous illnesses, is not performed. This multicenter, 3-year project aims to evaluate the safety of RV vaccine administration within the six main neonatal intensive care units of the Sicilian Region to preterm infants.

Use of Zoledronic Acid in a Neonate with Subcutaneous Fat Necrosis Complicated with Severe, Refractory Hypercalcemia.

Objective: Subcutaneous fat necrosis (SCFN) is a rare condition that may occur in the neonatal period. SCFN is an inflammatory disorder of the adipose tissue, usually found in full-term healthy infants who have a history of intrauterine or perinatal distress. It is usually a self-limited condition; however, in some cases, it can get complicated, leading to severe hypercalcemia that may be life-threatening.

Painful procedures in the NICU.

The authors after a brief introduction on the development of the perception of pain in the fetus and newborn, focus attention on the problem of painful procedures that are performed in the neonatal intensive care units reported in the scientific literature. Then report the design of the double-blind study that is taking place from February 2012 at the NICU ARNAS Civic - Palermo using three different concentrations of sucrose as analgesia during venipuncture and heel puncture in term neonates.