Use of Procalcitonin Assays to Predict Serious Bacterial Infection in Young Febrile Infants.

Importance: The procalcitonin (PCT) assay is an accurate screening test for identifying invasive bacterial infection (IBI); however, data on the PCT assay in very young infants are insufficient.

Objective: To assess the diagnostic characteristics of the PCT assay for detecting serious bacterial infection (SBI) and IBI in febrile infants aged 7 to 91 days.

Design, Setting, And Participants: A prospective cohort study that included infants aged 7 to 91 days admitted for fever to 15 French pediatric emergency departments was conducted for a period of 30 months (October 1, 2008, through March 31, 2011).

Can procalcitonin measurement help the diagnosis of osteomyelitis and septic arthritis? A prospective trial.

Objectives: Procalcitonin (PCT) is an accurate marker for differentiating bacterial infection from non-infective causes of inflammation or viral infection. However, there is only one study in children which tested procalcitonin as a diagnostic aid in skeletal infections. With this study we sought to evaluate the sensitivity, specificity and predictive values of procalcitonin for identifying bone and joint infection in children evaluated in the emergency department for non traumatic decreased active motion of a skeletal segment.

Neurological consequences of vitamin B12 deficiency and its treatment.

In developed countries, the vitamin B12 deficiency usually occurs in children exclusively breast-fed, whose mothers are vegetarians, causing low stores of vitamin B12. Symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency appear during the second trimester of life and include failure to thrive, lethargy, hypotonia, and arrest or regression of developmental skills. A megaloblastic anemia can be present.