Clinicohistological correlation of etiological spectrum of chronic liver disease diagnosed during noncirrhotic stages in children: Can need of liver biopsy be obviated?

Background And Aim: Limited data exist regarding the etiological spectrum of the subset of chronic liver diseases (CLDs) diagnosed in noncirrhotic states in children. Our primary objective was to study the clinicoetiological profile of CLDs detected in noncirrhotic stages in children younger than 12 years of age. The secondary objective was to find the hepatic histological correlation of provisional diagnosis by different ranks of doctors.

Validation of Revised Baveno VI Criteria for Screening of Varices Needing Treatment in Children with Cirrhosis.

Background: Baveno VI criteria for screening varices needing treatment (VNT) have not yet been validated in an exclusive pediatric and adolescent set of the population, in whom baseline parameters differ in relation to adults. Therefore, our primary objective was to validate Baveno VI and its expanded form in children below 18 years of age. The secondary aim was to elicit whether any revision of the above criteria with a target of not missing more than 5% VNT could be more accurate for this age group.

The prevalence of behavioral disorders among children under parental care and out of parental care: A comparative study in India.

Background: Children may suffer from a wide range of behavioral problems, but children living under conditions of perpetual stress and trauma and experiencing breakdown of family structures are tremendously affected. This study was adopted to identify the prevalence of behavioral disorders among children under parental care and out of parental care.

Methods: A cross-sectional comparative descriptive study was conducted among 300 children of age 6-12 years from a pediatric outpatient department of a selected hospital and 300 children from selected orphanages in Kolkata to compare the prevalence of behavioral disorders in children under parental care and out of parental care using Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ).

Etiology, clinical spectrum and outcome of metabolic liver diseases in children.

Objective: To determine the etiology, clinical spectrum and outcome of metabolic liver diseases (MLD) in children admitted in a tertiary care hospital of Eastern India.

Study Design: An observational study.

Place And Duration Of Study: Paediatric Liver Clinic and Paediatrics Inpatient Department of Nilratan Sircar Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata, Eastern India, from April 2009 to March 2011.

Effectiveness of beta blockers in primary prophylaxis of variceal bleeding in children with portal hypertension.

Aim: The primary aim of our study was to assess the effectiveness of beta blockers in non bleeding portal hypertensive children. The secondary objective was to evaluate whether the newer generation beta blockers were superior compared to conventional ones.

Methods: Conventional propranolol and newer generation carvedilol were administered to 31 subjects each, after stratifying them into nearly equal subgroups according to etiology (sinusoidal or presinusoidal).

Non-cirrhotic portal fibrosis among children admitted in a tertiary care hospital of Kolkata: a search for possible aetiologies.

Non-cirrhotic portal fibrosis (NCPF) is reported to be a very infrequent cause of portal hypertension (PHT) in paediatric population, but a number of cases of NCPF were found in the paediatric ward of NRS Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata which prompted us to do a study with objectives to find out the proportion of NCPF cases among the study population (the total number of PHT cases admitted in the study period) and their sociodemographic profile with special reference to residence in arsenic affected areas. It was a clinic-based retrospective study. All children below 12 years during the study period (August 2005 to July 2008) with clinical features suggestive of PHT were screened for NCPF.

Eligibility criteria of Doctorate in Medicine (Medical Gastroenterology) - is the change justified?

Eligibility criteria of Doctorate in Medicine (DM) in Medical Gastroenterology had been changed recently by Medical Council of India from MD/DNB in General Medicine and Pediatrics to only that of General Medicine. As DM (Pediatric Gastroenterology) has not come up in a big way in India, this will only lead to shortage of skilled manpower in near future in this emerging field. Enthusiastic pediatricians will also be reluctant to take the discipline, as DM degrees in other broad (adult) superspecialities are open to them.

Unusual associations of necrotizing fascitis: a case series report from a tertiary care hospital.

Necrotizing fasciitis is a rapidly progressive, potentially fatal infection of the superficial fascia and subcutaneous tissue. It is rare in children. We report three such cases in which differentiating from common soft tissue infection was challenging.

Profile of hepatitis A infection with atypical manifestations in children.

We assessed the clinical course and biochemical profile of symptomatic children with viral hepatitis A who had atypical manifestations. Of 229 children with hepatitis A, atypical manifestations were found in 32 (14%) subjects. Prolonged cholestasis (n = 14), acute liver failure (9), relapse (9), ascites (8), and hematological problems (8) were the common presentations.

Clinical profile, prognostic indicators and outcome of Wilson's disease in children: a hospital based study.

Background: Wilson's disease is a common metabolic disease of the tropics, which is treatable, if diagnosed early. In the paediatric group, the manifestations are mainly hepatic.

Aims: The objective was to study the varied presentations of the disease and to evaluate the diagnostic values of conventional tests in children.

Myelomeningocele with hydrocephalus and agenesis of corpus callosum.

A 45-day-old male baby presented with a leaking myelomeningocele and signs of meningitis. A computerised tomographic scan of brain revealed gross supratentorial ventriculomegaly with inflammatory exudates suggestive of intracranial infection. An unexpected association of complete agenesis of corpus callosum was discovered, however it is an incidental finding, a rare combination indeed.

Efficacy of high-dose Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG in controlling acute watery diarrhea in Indian children: a randomized controlled trial.

Aim: To evaluate the effective dose of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) as probiotic in acute watery diarrhea (AWD) in Indian children.

Setting: Hospital-based study.

Design: Randomized, controlled, blinded trial.

Klebsiella pneumoniae brain abscess in two neonates.

We report two premature infants who developed multiple brain abscesses following Klebsiella pneumoniae infection. Both the cases were diagnosed by ultrasonogram (USG) and cranial tomography. Abscess had intraventricular communication in one case.

Aetiology, clinical profile and prognostic indicators for children with acute liver failure admitted in a teaching hospital in Kolkata.

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of hepatotropic viruses in the causation of acute liver failure in children admitted to a tertiary hospital in Kolkata.

Design: Analysis of clinical and laboratory parameters (including viral markers) of children with acute liver failure using a predesigned, structured proforma.

Subjects And Settings: Admitted patients aged from 1 through 12 years who met the criteria of acute liver failure were included in the study.

Efficacy of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG in acute watery diarrhoea of Indian children: a randomised controlled trial.

Aim: To evaluate the role of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) as probiotic in acute watery diarrhoea (AWD).

Setting: Hospital-based study.

Design: Randomised, controlled, blinded trial.

Effect of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG in persistent diarrhea in Indian children: a randomized controlled trial.

Aim: To evaluate the role of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) as probiotic in persistent diarrhea (PD) in children of North Bengal, India.

Setting: Hospital-based study.

Design: Randomized, double-blind controlled trial.

Risk factors for mortality from neonatal tetanus: 7 years experience in North Bengal, India.

Background: Neonatal tetanus (NNT), a preventable disease, remains an important cause of infant mortality in developing countries such as India.

Objectives: To evaluate the demographic and clinical data of NNT in North Bengal, India and determine the risk factors for mortality.

Methods: Hospital records of all cases of NNT admitted over a 7-year period (1997-2003) were analysed.

Sialidosis type I (cherry red spot-myoclonus syndrome).

Sialidosis type 1 or the cherry red spot-myoclonus syndrome (CRSM) is an autosomal recessive disorder with the onset in adolescence of myoclonus and gradual visual failure. Here, a case of CRSM in a 12-year-old Bengali Muslim girl with the history of myoclonic jerks of limbs and the body since last 2 years and gradual impairment of vision since last one year is presented with a brief review of the literature.