Indian Academy of Pediatrics Revised (2021) Guidelines on Prevention and Treatment of Vitamin D Deficiency and Rickets.

Justification: The emerging literature on prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in India, prevention and treatment strategies of rickets, and extra-skeletal benefits of vitamin D suggest the need for revising the existing guidelines for prevention and treatment of vitamin D deficiency in India.

Objectives: To review the emerging literature on vitamin D prevalence and need for universal vitamin D supplementation. To suggest optimum vitamin D therapy for treatment of asymptomatic and symptomatic vitamin D deficiency, and rickets.

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Vaccination for Children: Position Statement of Indian Academy of Pediatrics Advisory Committee on Vaccination and Immunization Practices.

Justification: Data generated after the first wave has revealed that some children with coronavirus 19 (COVID-19) can become seriously ill. Multi-inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) and long COVID cause significant morbidity in children. Prolonged school closures and quarantine have played havoc with the psychosocial health of children.

Inflammatory bowel diseases in Tamil Nadu: A survey of demographics, clinical profile, and practices.

Background: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is increasingly diagnosed in South Asia. This survey by the Tamil Nadu Chapter of the Indian Society of Gastroenterology (TNISG) documents the demography, clinical profile, and therapeutic practices related to IBD in Tamil Nadu.

Methods: TNISG members from 32 institutions completed an online cross-sectional questionnaire on IBD patients from March 2020 to January 2021.

CARMIL2 Immunodeficiency with Epstein Barr Virus Associated Smooth Muscle Tumor (EBV-SMT). Report of a Case with Comprehensive Review of Literature.

Primary immunodeficiency (PID) having defects related to lymphocyte cytotoxic pathway or T-cell dysfunction are well known for developing opportunistic infections and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated diseases. CARMIL2 deficiency is a recently described combined immunodeficiency (CID) disorder characterized by defective CD28-mediated T cell co-stimulation, altered cytoskeletal dynamics, susceptibility to various infections and Epstein Barr Virus smooth muscle tumor (EBV-SMT). We report a homozygous CARMIL2 pathogenic variant presenting with recurrent infections and EBV associated smooth muscle tumor (SMT) in a child.

Safety and immunogenicity of a multidose vial formulation of 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine administered with routine pediatric vaccines in healthy infants in India: A phase 4, randomized, open-label study.

Purpose: This phase 4, randomized, open-label, multicenter study in healthy Indian infants and toddlers evaluated the safety, tolerability, and immunogenicity of the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) formulated in a multidose vial (MDV) or single prefilled syringe (PFS).

Methods: Healthy Indian infants (6 weeks of age) were randomized 1:1 to receive either PCV13-MDV or PCV13-PFS concomitant with routine pediatric vaccines. Subjects received a single dose of either PCV13-MDV or PCV13-PFS as a 4-dose schedule (infant series: 1 dose at 6, 10, and 14 weeks of age; toddler dose: 12 months of age).

A comprehensive molecular study identified 12 complementation groups with 56 novel FANC gene variants in Indian Fanconi anemia subjects.

Fanconi anemia (FA) is a rare autosomal or X-linked genetic disorder characterized by chromosomal breakages, congenital abnormalities, bone marrow failure (BMF), and cancer. There has been a discovery of 22 FANC genes known to be involved in the FA pathway. This wide number of pathway components makes molecular diagnosis challenging for FA.

Effect of CNCM-I 3799 and CU-1 on Acute Watery Diarrhea: A Randomized Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Study in Indian Children.

Purpose: To assess the effect of combination probiotic CNCM-I 3799 and CU-1 in outpatient management of acute watery diarrhea in children.

Methods: A randomized double-blind placebo-controlled study was conducted in 180 participants aged six months to five years with acute mild to moderate diarrhea. All were enrolled from six centers across India and centrally randomized to receive CNCM-I 3799 and CU-1 or a placebo along with oral rehydration salts and zinc supplementation.

A phase 4 study of the safety of the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in children 6 to 17 years of age in India.

Purpose: The 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) was recently approved in India for the prevention of pneumococcal disease in children aged 6 to 17 years based on global data as well as immunogenicity and safety findings from a phase 3 study. The current phase 4 study in India further evaluated the safety profile of PCV13 in this age group to support the positive benefit-risk profile of PCV13.

Methods: Healthy male and female children aged 6 to 17 years in India were administered a single intramuscular injection of PCV13.

Systemic Inflammation and Microbial Translocation Are Characteristic Features of SARS-CoV-2-Related Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children.

Background: Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) is a rare manifestation of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in children that can result in increased morbidity and mortality. The inflammatory underpinnings of MIS-C have not been examined in detail.

Methods: We examined the plasma levels of acute phase proteins and microbial translocation markers in children with MIS-C, children with acute coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection, SARS-CoV-2-seropositive children, and controls.

A Child with Unilateral Pulmonary Edema due to Mitral Valve Rupture Following Blunt Trauma.

A 7-year-old boy was admitted with a history of cough and tachypnea for 1 day. There was a history of a fall from a motorcycle with some abrasions over the left arm. The child was found to have tachypnea and tachycardia and was started on noninvasive ventilation.

Breastfeeding and Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Vaccination: Position Statement of Indian Academy of Pediatrics Advisory Committee on Vaccination and Immunization Practices.

Justification: In India, till recently, breastfeeding women have been excluded from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccination program, rendering a significant population of the country, including frontline workers, ineligible to derive the benefits of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout.

Objective: The objective of this recommendation is production of an evidence-based document to guide the pediatricians to give advice to breastfeeding mothers regarding the safety of COVID-19 vaccines in lactating women.

Process: Formulation of key question was done under the chairmanship of president of the IAP.

Public Engagement as the Fifth Dimension of Outbreak Communication: Public's Perceptions of Public Health Communication during COVID-19 in India.

Public health/risk communication is the foremost responsibility of a government during a pandemic. Risk communication aims to educate people, enhance their risk perceptions to help them engage and understand the benefits of compliance with recommendations. The existing legal enforcement of recommendations in India is criticized for failing to influence the public's compliance.

Multicentric Analysis of Erythromycin Resistance Determinants in Invasive Streptococcus pneumoniae; Associated Serotypes and Sequence Types in India.

Streptococcus pneumoniae is the major cause of childhood pneumonia and related deaths in India. Widespread use of erythromycin for the treatment of pneumonia has led to the emergence of erythromycin resistance. Despite this increase in erythromycin resistance, there are very little data on resistance determinants from India.

Activity of novel lactone ketolide nafithromycin against multicentric invasive and non-invasive pneumococcal isolates collected in India.

Background: India is among the nations reporting substantial healthcare burden linked to pneumococcal infections. Nafithromycin is a novel lactone ketolide antibiotic, which recently entered Phase 3 development in India for the indication of community-acquired bacterial pneumonia (CABP).

Objectives: To assess the activity of nafithromycin against serotyped invasive and non-invasive isolates, collected from nine medical centres across India.

Management of Helicobacter pylori infection: The Bhubaneswar Consensus Report of the Indian Society of Gastroenterology.

The Indian Society of Gastroenterology (ISG) felt the need to organize a consensus on Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection and to update the current management of H. pylori infection; hence, ISG constituted the ISG's Task Force on Helicobacter pylori.

Peripheral Inotropes in Critically Ill Children: Is It Safe?

Many children needing pediatric intensive care units care require inotropes, which are started peripherally prior to securing a central venous access. However, many hospitals in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) may not have access to central lines and the vasoactive medications are frequently given through a peripheral venous access. : The aim of our study was to describe the role of peripheral vasoactive inotropes in children.

gene CGG repeat distribution among the three individual cohorts with intellectual disability, autism, and primary ovarian insufficiency from Tamil Nadu, Southern India.

Fragile X syndrome is the most common genetic cause of intellectual disability (ID) and is also well known to have a role in primary ovarian insufficiency (POI) and fragile X-associated tremor ataxia syndrome (FXTAS) that expresses across generations. The objective was to compare the CGG repeat variants in gene among three correlating cohorts of ID, autism and idiopathic POI. Thirty-six patients with ID, 12 with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and 13 females with idiopathic POI were screened for CGG repeat size by fluorescent methylation-specific PCR and GeneScan analysis, irrespective of Hagerman checklist clinical scores.