Hanaa I. Rady

Prevalence of myocarditis in pediatric intensive care unit cases presenting with other system involvement

OBJECTIVE To assess children with myocarditis, the frequency of various presenting symptoms, and the accuracy of different investigations in the diagnosis. METHODS This was an observational study of 63 patients admitted to PICU with non-cardiac diagnosis. Cardiac enzymes, chest-X ray, echocardiography, and electrocardiogram were performed to diagnose myocarditis among those patients. RESULTS There were 16 cases of definite myocarditis. The age distribution was non-normal, with median of 5.5 months (3.25-21). Of the 16 patients who were diagnosed with myocarditis, 62.5% were originally diagnosed as having respiratory problems, and there were more females than males. Among the present cases, the accuracy of cardiac enzymes (cardiac troponin T [cTn] and creatine phosphokinase MB [CKMB]) in the diagnosis of myocarditis was only 63.5%, while the accuracy of low fractional shortening and of chest-X ray cardiomegaly was 85.7 and 80.9%; respectively. Cardiac troponin folds 2.02 had positive predictive value of 100%, negative predictive value of 88.7%, specificity of 100%, sensitivity of 62.5%, and accuracy of 90.5%. CONCLUSIONS Children with myocarditis present with symptoms that can be mistaken for other types of illnesses. When clinical suspicion of myocarditis exists, chest-X ray and echocardiography are sufficient as screening tests. Cardiac troponins confirm the diagnosis in screened cases, with specificity of 100%.

Profile of patients admitted to pediatric intensive care unit, Cairo University Hospital: 1-year study

Introduction Care of the critically ill patients is resource-intensive, and 15-20% of hospital budgets are spent in the ICUs. Objectives This study aimed to analyze the epidemiologic patterns of pediatric critically ill patients presenting to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) and the etiologies of PICU admission of different age groups. Materials and methods This descriptive study of all children aged less than 14 years presenting with critical illnesses to the PICU was conducted in a tertiary medical Hospital, in Cairo, from 2011 to 2012. All patients transferred to the PICU were included without distinction. Demographic data of critically ill children admitted to the PICU were analyzed. Etiologies of the PICU admissions were analyzed by various age groups. Results There were 532 critically ill children admitted to the PICU. Respiratory system diseases, foreign body inhalation removal, and encephalopathy were the predominant etiologies of admission 49.6, 11.9, and 11.5%, respectively. Mortality rate was the highest in infants below 1 year of age (43.9%). Predominant length of ICU stay was around 7 days. Conclusion The present study shows the etiologies of pediatric patients admitted to ICUs. The epidemiologic analysis of patients admitted to PICU can serve as basis for developing dedicated protocols for critical care and redistributing the ICUs′ resources.

Prevalence of Human rhinovirus infection in young children with acute wheezing

Abstract Introduction Recurrent wheezing is one of the leading causes of chronic illness in childhood. We aimed to evaluate the prevalence of Human Rhinovirus (HRV) infection in the acute attack of wheezy chest which began after a respiratory illness. Methodology The study was conducted on 200 children aged 2 months to 5 years presenting to the emergency department with an acute wheezy episode either for the first time or recurrent wheeze defined as >2 reports of wheezing in the first 3 years of life. All subjects were subjected to a complete history and clinical examination. Chest X-ray was done to all subjects. Nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal swabs were obtained from all subjects and the presence of HRV was determined by PCR examination. Results By PCR method, 163 patients (81.5%) were positive for viral infection. Due to viral co-infection, 49.5% (99 cases) were +ve for Respiratory Syncytial virus followed by HRV 43.5% (87 cases). Conclusion HRV was the second common viral infection in children with wheezes. Its prevalence was more in winter with higher incidence of recurrence. Compared to the other respiratory viruses, it had the higher mortality 43.7%.