Lung Ultrasound Score in Neonates with Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia (CDH-LUS): A Cross-Sectional Study.

The use of a lung ultrasound (LUS) score has been described in the early phases of neonatal respiratory distress syndrome; however, there is still no data regarding the application of the LUS score to neonates with a congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH). The objective of this observational cross-sectional study was to explore, for the first time, the postnatal changes in LUS score patterns in neonates with CDH, with the creation of a new specific CDH-LUS score. We included all consecutive neonates with a prenatal diagnosis of CDH admitted to our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) from June 2022 to December 2022 who underwent lung ultrasonography.

Comparison of three clinical scoring tools for bronchiolitis to predict the need for respiratory support and length of stay in neonates and infants up to three months of age.

Background: Bronchiolitis severity can be assessed using different clinical scores. Some of the most used are the Wang Bronchiolitis Severity Score (WBSS), the Kristjansson Respiratory Score (KRS), and the Global Respiratory Severity Score (GRSS), calculated on the vital parameters and the clinical conditions.

Objective: To assess which of the three clinical scores better predicts the need for respiratory support and length of hospital stay in neonates and infants younger than three months, admitted to neonatal units for bronchiolitis.

Is nurse staffing associated with critical deterioration events on acute and critical care pediatric wards? A literature review.

Unlabelled: Pediatric and neonatal patients admitted to acute and critical care wards may experience critical deterioration events that may lead to unexpected deaths if unrecognized and untreated promptly. Adequate levels and skill-mix of nurse staffing are essential for the quality of patient monitoring and response to deteriorating patients. Insufficient staffing may have an impact on the occurrence of missed care and consequently on critical deterioration events, increasing the risk of mortality and failure-to-rescue.

Neurodevelopmental Outcomes in Preterm Infants Receiving a Multicomponent vs. a Soybean-Based Lipid Emulsion: 24 Month Follow-Up of a Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Few studies in the literature have analyzed the long-term neurodevelopmental outcomes of the administration of a multicomponent versus a soybean-based lipid emulsion (LE) in preterm infants receiving parenteral nutrition (PN). A recent randomized controlled trial conducted in our unit provided evidence of better growth in head circumference during the hospital stay in those who received a multicomponent LE.

Methods: This is a 24 month follow-up study of preterm infants, previously enrolled in a randomized trial, who received a multicomponent LE (SMOFlipid) or a standard soybean-based one (Intralipid).

Intrafetal Laser Therapy Is a Feasible Treatment for Different Fetal Conditions: A Systematic Review.

Introduction: Over the past years, intrafetal laser (IFL) therapy has been increasingly used in the management of various prenatal conditions. The aim of our research was to clarify the effectiveness and safety of this technique.

Methods: A systematic review of the literature was carried out using MEDLINE/PubMed over a period of 20 years (2001-2021).

How much does a liter of donor human milk cost? Cost analysis of operating a human milk bank in Italy.

Background: To date, 40 Human Milk Banks (HMB) have been established in Italy; however, recent cost analysis data for operating an HMB in Italy are not available in the literature.

Methods: This study was a cross-sectional study performed at "Bambino Gesù" Children's Hospital in Rome, Italy in 2019. We assessed the one-year operational costs and, the per liter unit costs at our HMB.

Lessons from SARS-CoV-2 Pandemics: How Restrictive Measures Impacted the Trend of Respiratory Infections in Neonates and Infants up to Three Months of Age.

(1) Background: Massive social efforts to prevent the spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic have affected the epidemiological features of respiratory infections. (2) Methods: The study aims to describe the trend of hospitalizations for bronchiolitis among newborns and infants up to three months of life in Rome (Italy), in the pre-COVID-19 era and during the pandemic. (3) Results: We observed a marked decrease in the number of neonates and infants with bronchiolitis after national lockdowns in 2020 and the first months of 2021 and a similar trend in the number of bronchiolitis caused by respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

Incidence and risk factors of bacterial sepsis and invasive fungal infection in neonates and infants requiring major surgery: an Italian multicentre prospective study.

Background: Limited data are currently available on the incidence rates and risk factors for bacterial sepsis and invasive fungal infections (IFIs) among neonates and infants undergoing major surgery.

Aim: To assess the incidence of bacterial sepsis and IFI, fungal colonization, risk factors for sepsis, and mortality in neonates and infants aged <3 months undergoing major surgery.

Methods: A multicentre prospective study was conducted involving 13 level-3 neonatal intensive care units in Italy, enrolling all infants aged ≤3 months undergoing major surgery.

Increased use of high-flow nasal cannulas after the pandemic in bronchiolitis: a more severe disease or a changed physician's attitude?

Unlabelled: After the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, we noticed a marked increase in high-flow nasal cannula use for bronchiolitis. This study aims to report the percentage of children treated with high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) in various seasons. The secondary outcomes were admissions for bronchiolitis, virological results, hospital burden, and NICU/PICU need.

Severe Bartter syndrome type 1: Prompt postnatal management thanks to antenatal identification of SLC12A1 pathogenic variants.

Bartter syndrome (BS) refers to a group of hereditary kidney disorders. One antenatal form is Bartter syndrome type 1 (BS1), caused by pathogenic variants in the SLC12A1 gene. We report a case of BS1 presenting with severe polyhydramnios.

Presepsin levels in neonatal cord blood are not influenced by maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Objectives: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) can present with various symptoms and can involve multiple organs. Women infected during pregnancy have a higher incidence of obstetrical complications and infants born to "positive" mothers may get the infection with different manifestations. Presepsin seems to be a promising sepsis biomarker in adults and neonates.

Increase of Parkin and ATG5 plasmatic levels following perinatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy.

Brain injury at birth is an important cause of neurological and behavioral disorders. Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) is a critical cerebral event occurring acutely or chronically at birth with high mortality and morbidity in newborns. Therapeutic strategies for the prevention of brain damage are still unknown, and the only medical intervention for newborns with moderate-to-severe HIE is therapeutic hypothermia (TH).

Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Neonates Born to Mothers with SARS-CoV-2 Infection (MIS-N) and in Neonates and Infants Younger Than 6 Months with Acquired COVID-19 (MIS-C): A Systematic Review.

(1) Introduction: There is an increasing literature describing neonates born to mothers with SARS-CoV-2 infection (MIS-N) and infants infected with SARS-CoV-2 who presented with a severe disease (MIS-C). (2) Methods: To investigate clinical features of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in neonates and infants under six months of age, we used a systematic search to retrieve all relevant publications in the field. We screened in PubMed, EMBASE and Scopus for data published until 10 October 2021.

SARS-CoV-2 Vaccines during Pregnancy and Breastfeeding: A Systematic Review of Maternal and Neonatal Outcomes.

This systematic review summarizes current knowledges about maternal and neonatal outcomes following COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy and breastfeeding. ( PubMed, Cochrane Library, and the Education Resources Information Center (ERIC) were searched up to 27 October 2021. The primary outcome was to estimate how many pregnant and lactating women were reported to be vaccinated and had available maternal and neonatal outcomes.

Hemodynamic Assessment of a Large Pulmonary Arteriovenous Malformation in a Neonate: Case Report and Review of Literature.

Herein we report the case of a neonate with a prenatally diagnosed large pulmonary arteriovenous malformation, managed with minimally invasive hemodynamic monitoring in our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. The combination of Near-Infrared Spectroscopy and Pressure Recording Analytical Method could guide neonatal management of critical cases of vascular anomalies: immediate data are offered to clinicians, from which therapeutic decisions such as timing of surgical resection are made to achieve a positive outcome. We also systemically collected and summarized information on patients' characteristics of previous cases reported in literature to data, and we compared them to our case.

Genotypes and phenotypes heterogeneity in PIK3CA-related overgrowth spectrum and overlapping conditions: 150 novel patients and systematic review of 1007 patients with PIK3CA pathogenetic variants.

Background: Postzygotic activating variants cause several phenotypes within the -related overgrowth spectrum (PROS). Variant strength, mosaicism level, specific tissue involvement and overlapping disorders are responsible for disease heterogeneity. We explored these factors in 150 novel patients and in an expanded cohort of 1007 mutated patients, analysing our new data with previous literature to give a comprehensive picture.

Neonatal Cerebral Venous Thrombosis following Maternal SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Pregnancy.

A possible consequence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection is the development of an exacerbated thrombophilic status, and cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) is a rare but possible complication of SARS-CoV-2 infection reported both in adults and in children. The present case report describes the clinical course of a term neonate showing extended CVT of unclear origin, whose mother had developed SARS-CoV-2 infection during the third trimester of pregnancy. We speculate that the prothrombotic status induced by maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection may have played a pathophysiological role in the development of such severe neonatal complication.

Sulfonylurea-Insensitive Permanent Neonatal Diabetes Caused by a Severe Gain-of-Function Tyr330His Substitution in Kir6.2.

Background/aims: Mutations in KCNJ11, the gene encoding the Kir6.2 subunit of pancreatic and neuronal KATP channels, are associated with a spectrum of neonatal diabetes diseases.

Methods: Variant screening was used to identify the cause of neonatal diabetes, and continuous glucose monitoring was used to assess effectiveness of sulfonylurea treatment.

OPHTHALMIA NEONATORUM in Italy: it is time for change.

Ophthalmia neonatorum (ON) refers to any conjunctivitis occurring in the first 28 days of life. In the past Neisseria gonorrhoeae was the most common cause of ON. It decreased with the introduction of prophylaxis at birth with the instillation of silver nitrate 2% (the Credè's method of prophylaxis).

The Emerging Role of Presepsin (P-SEP) in the Diagnosis of Sepsis in the Critically Ill Infant: A Literature Review.

Sepsis causes high rates of morbidity and mortality in NICUs. The estimated incidence varies between 5 and 170 per 1000 births, depending on the social context. In very low birth-weight neonates, the level of mortality increases with the duration of hospitalization, reaching 36% among infants aged 8-14 days and 52% among infants aged 15-28 days.

Brain Growth Evaluation Assessed with Transfontanellar (B-GREAT) Ultrasound. Old and New Bedside Markers to Estimate Cerebral Growth in Preterm Infants: a Pilot Study.

Objective: We aimed to investigate the feasibility of evaluating overall preterm brain growth using a gathered set of measurements of brain structures in standard cranial ultrasound planes. We called this method of assessment Brain Growth Evaluation Assessed with Transfontanellar ultrasound (B-GREAT).

Study Design: In this prospective observational cohort study, cranial ultrasound was regularly performed (on day 1, 2, 3, and 7 of life, and then weekly until discharge, and at term) in preterm infants born with gestational age (GA) less than 32 weeks.