A dietary fiber mixture versus lactulose in the treatment of childhood constipation: a double-blind randomized controlled trial.

Background: Constipation is a common problem in children. As first-line treatment, increased dietary fiber is often advocated. To our knowledge, however, no large studies evaluating the effect of dietary fibers in childhood constipation have been published.

Efficacy of cognitive behavioral therapy for adolescents with chronic fatigue syndrome: long-term follow-up of a randomized, controlled trial.

Objectives: The purpose of this work was to assess the long-term outcome of adolescents with chronic fatigue syndrome who received cognitive behavioral therapy and to determine the predictive value of fatigue severity and physical impairments of the adolescent and the fatigue severity of the mother at baseline for the outcome of the treatment at follow-up.

Patients And Methods: Sixty-six adolescent patients with chronic fatigue syndrome who previously participated in a randomized, controlled trial that showed that cognitive behavioral therapy was more effective than a waiting-list condition in reducing fatigue and improving physical functioning were contacted for a follow-up assessment. Fifty participants of the follow-up study had received cognitive behavioral therapy for chronic fatigue syndrome (32 formed the cognitive behavioral therapy group in the original trial, and 18 patients received cognitive behavioral therapy after the waiting period).

Long-term outcome of juvenile idiopathic arthritis following a placebo-controlled trial: sustained benefits of early sulfasalazine treatment.

Objectives: A previous 24-week randomised trial demonstrated that sulfasalazine (SSZ) treatment was superior to placebo (PLAC) in suppressing disease activity in patients with oligo- and polyarticular onset juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). The current study determines the long-term outcome of the trial participants and evaluates whether the benefits of SSZ allocation are sustained over time.

Methods: Between 2001 and 2003, 32 SSZ and 29 PLAC patients (90% of all patients) were prospectively examined clinically and by chart review, median 9 years (range 7 to 10) after trial inclusion.

[A boy with Churg-Strauss syndrome and thrombosis associated with eosinophilia].

A 13-year-old boy, recently diagnosed as having Churg-Strauss syndrome, presented with a thrombus at the level of the aortic bifurcation. Echocardiography revealed a left-ventricular thrombus as well. He was treated by means of surgical thrombectomy, corticosteroids, heparinisation and a coumarine derivative.