A diagnostic host-specific transcriptome response for Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia to guide pediatric patient treatment.

Mycoplasma pneumoniae causes atypical pneumonia in children and young adults. Its lack of a cell wall makes it resistant to beta-lactams, which are the first-line treatment for typical pneumonia. Current diagnostic tests are time-consuming and have low specificity, leading clinicians to administer empirical antibiotics.

Effects of natalizumab on oligoclonal bands in the cerebrospinal fluid of patients with multiple sclerosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Introduction: Oligoclonal bands (OCBs) in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) are utilized for diagnosing multiple sclerosis (MS), as they are found in 95% of patients. Additionally, OCBs are linked to disease prognosis. The primary contributors to OCB production are long-lived plasma cells.

Being a medical trainee in Greece: Aims and key aspects of the Greek Survey of Medical Work and Education.

Anyone reading this text has probably been a medical trainee once. What was your training like? More importantly, did anyone during your training ask you what your training was like? For example, did anyone ask you if you were satisfied with your training or if you worked a little or a lot? Probably not. The origin of medical specialty training is that of informal apprenticeship.

Sex differences in survival following surgery for esophageal cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

The impact of sex on the prognosis of patients with esophageal cancer remains unclear. Evidence supports that sex- based disparities in esophageal cancer survival could be attributed to sex- specific risk exposures, such as age at diagnosis, race, socioeconomic status, smoking, drinking, and histological type. The aim of our study is to investigate the role of sex disparities in survival of patients who underwent surgery for esophageal cancer.

A Rare Case of COVID-19 Related Acute Necrotizing Encephalopathy With the RANBP2 Mutation in a Pediatric Patient.

Acute necrotizing encephalopathy (ANE) is a rare childhood neurological disorder. The familiar type of ANE (ANE1) is associated with a mutation in the RANBP2 gene. Both SARS-CoV-2 and RANBP2 mutations are responsible for the manifestation of a hyper-inflammatory response that invades the central nervous system and plays a key role in the rapid progression of encephalopathy.

Restoring the Anatomy of Long Bones with Large Septic Non-Union Defects with the Masquelet Technique.

Septic non-union in long-bone fractures represents a challenging clinical entity. Management of lower extremity segmental bone defects, aiming to restore functional anatomy, remains extremely difficult and controversial. Masquelet technique is a reconstruction method for large diaphyseal bone defects, based on the notion of the induced membrane.

Patellar Dislocation: Workup and Decision-Making.

Acute patellar dislocation (PD) is usually a problem of adolescents and young adults. In most cases, it is a sports-related injury. It is the result of an indirect force on the knee joint, which leads to valgus and external rotation of the tibia relative to the femur.

The inter-familiar issues of Greek parents facing childhood cancer.

Cancer as a whole, but especially childhood cancer, creates a number of psychological, social, and family problems as well as practical and financial issues, which every parent is called upon to solve. This study focuses on childhood cancer and aims at a thorough analysis of the physical/organic, psychological, and social problems associated with the parents and relatives of a child with cancer. The special element in pediatric neoplasms is not only the vulnerable population target group, but also the set of secondary effects it has on the environment of the sick child.

Robotic-assisted versus laparoscopic paraesophageal hernia repair: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Purpose: The robotic approach offers improved visualization and maneuverability for surgeons. This systematic review aims to compare the outcomes of robotic-assisted and conventional laparoscopic approaches for paraesophageal hernia repair, specifically examining postoperative complications, operative time, hospital stay, and recurrence.

Methods: A systematic review including thorough research through PubMed, Scopus, and Cochrane, was performed and only comparative studies were included.

Associations Between Core Temperature Disorders and Outcomes of Pediatric Intensive Care Unit Patients.

Background: The few studies of associations between fever and outcomes in pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) patients have conflicting findings. Associations between hypothermia and patient outcomes have not been studied.

Objective: To investigate the incidence and characteristics of fever and hypothermia and their associations with adverse outcomes among PICU patients.

Urinary NT-proBNP: A Useful Biomarker for the Diagnosis of Respiratory Distress in the Neonatal Population.

Objective: To determine the diagnostic accuracy of urinary NT-proBNP levels in the detection and classification of the severity of respiratory distress in neonates after birth.

Methods: We compared the urinary NT- proBNP levels between the respiratory distress (RD) group and the control group on the 1st, 3rd, and 5th day of life (DOL).

Results: The RD group (55 neonates) showed higher levels of NT-proBNP compared to the control group (63 neonates) on DOL1 (585.

Development of an homeostasis model between airway epithelial cells, bacteria and bacteriophages: a time-lapsed observation of cell viability and inflammatory response.

Bacteriophages represent the most extensive group of viruses within the human virome and have a significant impact on general health and well-being by regulating bacterial population dynamics. , found in the anterior nostrils, throat and skin, is an opportunistic pathobiont that can cause a wide range of diseases, from chronic inflammation to severe and acute infections. In this study, we developed a human cell-based homeostasis model between a clinically isolated strain of 141 and active phages for this strain (PYO) isolated from the commercial Pyophage cocktail (PYO).

Inferior Vena Cava agenesis presenting as deep vein thrombosis in an eight year-old girl.

Agenesis of vena cava inferior (AVCI) is a rare congenital malformation with a prevalence of 0.0005-1% in the general population. High level of suspicion is required in young patients with deep vein thrombosis (DVT), particularly bilateral.

Antiphospholipid syndrome after streptococcal toxic shock syndrome later diagnosed as Behcet's disease.

Streptococcal toxic shock syndrome is a severe complication of group A streptococci. The production of antiphospholipid antibodies has been associated with streptococcal infections and with autoimmune diseases. Furthermore, streptococcal infections could be a trigger of Behcet's disease.

The Differences Between RSV and no RSV Acute Bronchiolitis in Hospitalized Infants: A Cross-Sectional Study.

To identify the differences between the RSV and non-RSV bronchiolitis in hospitalized infants in a Greek tertiary pediatric unit and the possible risk factors related to severe forms of the illness. We performed a retrospective cross-sectional data analysis by reviewing medical records of patients that were hospitalized for acute bronchiolitis from 2012 to 2019. The patients with RSV bronchiolitis were found to require antibiotic treatment, IV fluids, adrenaline, and hypertonic saline inhalations more frequently than the non-RSV patients.

Performance of point-of care molecular and antigen-based tests for SARS-CoV-2: a living systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Molecular and antigen point-of-care tests (POCTs) have augmented our ability to rapidly identify and manage SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, their clinical performance varies among individual studies.

Objectives: The evaluation of the performance of molecular and antigen-based POCTs in confirmed, suspected, or probable COVID-19 cases compared with that of laboratory-based RT-PCR in real-life settings.

Primary Congenital Hallux Varus: A Step-Cut Surgical Approach.

Hallux varus is a rare deformity of the forefoot, which is characterized by medial deviation of the proximal phalanx of the great toe at the metatarsophalangeal joint. It is usually acquired, secondary to failed hallux valgus surgery, trauma, neurologic or rheumatologic disease. Rarely, this deformity may be congenital, either isolated, or in the context of various underlying congenital malformations of the foot, such as poly-syndactyly or longitudinal epiphyseal bracket, or part of generalized skeletal malformations.

Missed Monteggia Fracture Dislocation in a 10-year-old Child - A Step-by-Step Approach to Properly Solving a Complex Problem: A Case Report.

Introduction: Monteggia injuries are relatively rare in the pediatric population. They can be missed leading to complications arising from a chronic radial head dislocation. There is limited information about their proper management in the literature.