International Perspectives: Clinical Kernicterus in Preterm Infants in Japan
In recent years, clinical kernicterus has been diagnosed in preterm infants on the basis of motor (kinetic) disorders such as choreoathetosis and dystonia, impairment in auditory neuropathy-type hearing, and abnormal pallidal signals on head magnetic resonance imaging. In Japan, it is currently estimated that at least 8 to 9 cases of kernicterus (approximately 2 per 1,000 cases) occur annually in preterm infants of less than 30 weeks’ gestation. Therefore, there is an urgent need to revise our jaundice management approach in preterm infants. Two major characteristics of Japanese preterm infants who develop clinical k...
Source: NeoReviews recent issues - March 1, 2016 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Morioka, I., Nakamura, H., Iwatani, S., Wong, R. J., Iijima, K. Tags: Pediatric Drug Labeling Update Articles Source Type: news

What Serotypes Cause the Most Group B Streptococcal Disease?
Discussion Streptococcus agalactiae or Lancefield Group B streptococcus (GBS) was first described in 1887 and the first neonatal cases were described in the early 1960s. GBS can cause infections in all age groups but pregnant women and infants share most of the burden of the disease. GBS asymptomatically colonizes the genital and gastrointestinal tracts of pregnant women (15-40%). GBS is then transmitted vertically to infants generally after the rupture of fetal membranes or onset of labor. It is estimated that 50% of infants born to GBS+ mothers become colonized and 1% have invasive disease. Recurrent infections do occur ...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - February 22, 2016 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news

What Are Current Treatments for Postpartum Depression?
Discussion Postpartum depression affects 10 to 20% of women after delivery, but less than half of these women are detected. Postpartum depression is defined as major depressive episodes with symptom onset during pregnancy or in the first four weeks following delivery. There is recognition that symptoms may begin later after delivery but the mother would not be diagnosed with PPD. PPD is distinct from postpartum blues which occur in 50 to 80% of new mothers. They occur within 1 to 2 days of delivery and resolve within 10-14 days of delivery. Symptoms include anxiety, depression, irritability, tearfulness, poor sleep, and ...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - February 15, 2016 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news

What Are Risk Factors for Cholelithiasis?
Discussion Bile is produced by the liver to aid absorption of fat soluble vitamins and lipids from the gastrointestinal tract and to transport bilirubin, cholesterol and other substances to the gastrointestinal tract. Bile is the main form of cholesterol excretion. Gallstones or cholelithiasis form when the balance of substances within the hepatobiliary tract favors supersaturation with crystal formation and gallstone formation. It is a dynamic state of affairs as gallstones can form and also have a high rate of resorption of up to 50%. Gallstones 3 mm are called gallstones. Gallstones, while not as common as adult popul...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - January 4, 2016 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news

How Much Bilirubin Can Cause Hearing Loss in the Newborn?How Much Bilirubin Can Cause Hearing Loss in the Newborn?
This study aims to define the threshold above which the risk for sensorineural hearing loss is significantly elevated. Medscape Pediatrics (Source: Medscape Today Headlines)
Source: Medscape Today Headlines - December 14, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Pediatrics Viewpoint Source Type: news

When Do Day-Night Circadian Rhythms Really Start for Infants?
Discussion The earth rotates on its axis approximately every 24 hours with corresponding changes in ambient light occurring over that time period. Circadian systems have evolved in almost all living organisms to adapt to the changes in environmental light conditions and include sleep-wake cycles and changes in daily hormone production. In mammals , “[c]ircadian clocks resident in nearly every, if not all, mammalian cells…” and have been detected in embryonic stem cells. The circadian timing system has 3 major components – a central biological clock, input pathways and output pathways. The central bi...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - September 14, 2015 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news

Early metabolic acidosis and coma in massive acetaminophen overdose
3.5 out of 5 stars Coma and Severe Acidosis: Remember to Consider Acetaminophen. Villano JH et al. J Med Toxicol 2015 July 8 [Epub ahead of print] Reference This paper, from UC-San Diego, contains an excellent case discussion that makes numerous important points about a patient who presents with decreased mental status and high-anion-gap metabolic acidosis. The patient was a 28-year-old male who was brought to the emergency department because he was found to be unresponsive in his jail cell 16 hours after being arrested for murder. Initial evaluation revealed tachycardia (111/min,) mild hypothermia (95.5oF,) and a depresse...
Source: The Poison Review - August 7, 2015 Category: Toxicology Authors: Leon Tags: Medical acetaminophen overdose APAP elevated anion gap metabolic acidosis Source Type: news

Evidence of efficacy of gene therapy in rodents affected by a rare genetic liver disease, Crigler-Na
(AFM-Téléthon) Federico Mingozzi, head of the Immunology and Liver Gene Therapy team at Généthon, the laboratory created by the AFM-Téléthon, presented at the 48th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition (ESPGHAN, May 6-9, Amsterdam), work done in collaboration with an Italian and Dutch teams showing long-term correction of a genetic defect causing toxic buildup of bilirubin in murine and rat models of Crigler-Najjar syndrome. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)
Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health - May 7, 2015 Category: Global & Universal Source Type: news

Bilirubin as a Potential Causal Factor in T2D RiskBilirubin as a Potential Causal Factor in T2D Risk
Can elevated bilirubin protect against type 2 diabetes? Diabetes (Source: Medscape Today Headlines)
Source: Medscape Today Headlines - April 20, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Diabetes & Endocrinology Journal Article Source Type: news

Alkaline Phosphatase, Bilirubin Levels and Outcomes in PBCAlkaline Phosphatase, Bilirubin Levels and Outcomes in PBC
Do alkaline phosphatase and bilirubin levels help clinicians predict disease outcome in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis? Gastroenterology (Source: Medscape Today Headlines)
Source: Medscape Today Headlines - April 20, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Gastroenterology Journal Article Source Type: news

Rebound Bilirubin Checks Before DischargeRebound Bilirubin Checks Before Discharge
Does keeping newborns in the hospital and checking for rebound hyperbilirubinemia predict who will need re-treatment? Medscape Pediatrics (Source: Medscape Today Headlines)
Source: Medscape Today Headlines - April 14, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Pediatrics Viewpoint Source Type: news

Low sodium levels increases liver transplant survival benefit in the sickest patients
Researchers report that low levels of sodium in the blood, known as hyponatremia, increase the risk of dying for patients on the liver transplant waiting list. The study showed an increase in survival benefit for patients with hyponatremia and a Model for End Stage Liver Disease (MELD) score of 12 or more. The MELD score measures the risk of death on waiting list. It is calculated using patient’s serum bilirubin, creatinine, and prothrombin time and is used by national organ allocation policy to determine the priority for a patient on the transplant waitlist. Patients who are most sick, with a high MELD score, are at the...
Source: ScienceDaily Headlines - January 27, 2015 Category: Science Source Type: news