John H.T. Waldhausen

Group A streptococcal necrotizing fasciitis complicating primary varicella: a series of fourteen patients.

We retrospectively reviewed the clinical course of group A Streptococcus necrotizing fasciitis complicating primary varicella in children admitted to Childrens Hospital and Medical Center, Seattle, WA, during a 18-month period. The potential benefit of various therapeutic interventions was examined. Fourteen children ages 6 months to 10 years were treated for group A Streptococcus necrotizing fasciitis as a complication of primary varicella. Eight patients experienced a delay in initial diagnosis as a result of nonspecific, early clinical findings of necrotizing fasciitis. Each patient underwent surgical exploration with fasciotomies and debridement. Initial antibiotic therapy was broad spectrum and included clindamycin. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy for as many as 6 treatments was used as adjunctively therapy in 12 patients, with subjective benefit in 6 patients. All 14 patients were discharged home with good function and no long term sequelae. This potentially fatal bacterial infection of the deep fascial layers requires early recognition by primary care physicians and an intensive, multidisciplinary therapeutic approach, including thorough surgical debridement and appropriate antibiotic therapy.

Acute Appendicitis Risks of Complications: Age and Medicaid Insurance

Objectives. To describe the epidemiology of acute appendicitis in children from Washington State, and to determine important risk factors for complications. Design. Retrospective cohort study. Setting. All children (<17 years old) treated in Washington State who were identified by hospital discharge diagnosis codes from 1987 through 1996. Methods. The hospital discharge data were reviewed for all children with a primary diagnosis code for acute appendicitis. Complicated disease was defined as perforation or abscess formation. Results. Young children (0–4 years old) had the lowest annual incidence of acute appendicitis, but they had a 5-fold increased risk of complicated disease (odds ratio: 4.9; 95% confidence interval: 4.0–5.9), compared with teenagers. Children with Medicaid insurance had a 1.3-fold increased risk of complicated disease, compared with children with commercial insurance (odds ratio: 1.3: 95% confidence interval: 1.2–1.4). Children with Medicaid insurance had significantly longer average length of stay (4.0 ± 3.7 days) than all other payers (commercial insurance: 3.3 ± 4.0 days; health maintenance organization: 3.5 ± 3.1 days; and self-insured: 3.7 ± 5.8 days). Conclusions. Very young children had the greatest risk of complicated disease. Children with Medicaid insurance had increased risk of complicated disease, compared with children with commercial health insurance and longer length of stay. Additional studies are needed to evaluate barriers to care for children with Medicaid insurance.

Minimally invasive surgery and clinical decision-making for pediatric malignancy.

AbstractBackground: Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) is an ideal way to obtain biopsy specimens in children with cancer. We examined the safety, reliability and outcome of decisions made based on tissue obtained using MIS. Methods: Fifty-nine oncology patients underwent 62 MIS procedures between January 1994 and July 1998. Complications, biopsy results, and outcomes were reviewed. Results: The study population comprised 32 boys and 27 girls, with an average age of 8.8 years. There were 47 thoracoscopic and 15 laparoscopic operations. Laparoscopic procedures included initial biopsy, determination of resectability, and second-look exam. Thoracoscopic procedures included 40 lung biopsies and seven biopsies/resections of mediastinal masses. Diagnostic accuracy was 100% in all cases. No patient was found retrospectively to have been inadequately treated based on decisions made from tissue obtained by MIS. Conclusion: MIS is a safe and accurate means of obtaining tissue in pediatric oncology patients. Treatment decisions can be made accurately and with confidence using these techniques.

Cholecystectomy is becoming an increasingly common operation in children

PURPOSE To determine the cause of a marked rise in cholecystectomy at a regional childrens hospital. METHODS Retrospective review of 185 patients undergoing cholecystectomy since 1984. The years 1984 to 1990 (group I) and 1991 to 1996 (group II) were compared. RESULTS Cholecystectomy for gallbladder disease increased from 4.4/year (group I) to 16.3/ year (group II). Abdominal ultrasound examinations increased during this time. The ratio of children diagnosed with gallstones and then undergoing cholecystectomy also increased (P = 0.005). In group 11, 43% of children had no apparent etiology for gallstones, and more children developed complications of gallstones and evidence of choledocholithiasis. CONCLUSIONS (1) The increased incidence of cholecystectomy is probably multifactorial. (2) Gallstone identification has increased owing to increased patient visits and more liberal use of ultrasonography in patients with abdominal pain. (3) More patients with cholelithiasis now undergo cholecystectomy perhaps because of a change in physician perception of the disease and an apparent increase in complications from gallstones.

Post-traumatic hepatic pseudoaneurysms in children

Background. Post-traumatic hepatic artery pseudoaneurysms are rarely seen in children. Materials and methods. We retrospectively reviewed the radiologic studies and medical records of three patients treated at our institution and reviewed the literature. The patients (ages 5–13 years) presented immediately to 2 months after blunt (two patients) and penetrating (one patient) trauma. The hepatic pseudoaneurysms were discovered during work-up for fever (one patient), gastrointestinal bleeding and hyperbilirubinemia (one patient), or widened mediastinum (one patient) on chest radiograph. In two patients, the diagnosis was initially suspected by computed tomography (CT) examination and confirmed by angiography. In the third patient, the diagnosis was made initially by angiography. All three pseudoaneurysms were treated with transcatheter embolization. Results. All three embolizations were initially technically successful. However, there was recurrence in one case, in which embolization distal to the neck of the pseudoaneurysms was not technically possible. With conservative management, however, the residual lesion demonstrated spontaneous occlusion by ultrasound (US) at 6 months. Conclusion. This uncommon complication of liver trauma in children can have a delayed presentation, can be clinically unsuspected, and can follow blunt or penetrating trauma. Endovascular embolotherapy is the treatment of choice.

Outcomes in Neonates with Gastroschisis in U.S. Children’s Hospitals

Our objectives are to report patient characteristics, comorbidities, and outcomes for gastroschisis patients and analyze factors associated with mortality and sepsis. Using Pediatric Health Information System data, we examined neonates with both an International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision diagnosis (756.79) and procedure (54.71) code for gastroschisis (2003 to 2008). We examined descriptive characteristics and conducted multivariate regression models examining risk factors for mortality, during the birth hospitalization, and sepsis. Analysis of 2490 neonates with gastroschisis found 90 deaths (3.6%) and sepsis in 766 (31%). Critical comorbidities and procedures are cardiovascular defects (15%), pulmonary conditions (5%), intestinal atresia (11%), intestinal resection (12.5%), and ostomy formation (8.3%). Factors associated with mortality were large bowel resection (odds ratio [OR] 8.26, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.17 to 58.17), congenital circulatory (OR 5.62, 95% CI 2.11 to 14.91), and pulmonary (OR 8.22, 95% CI 2.75 to 24.58) disease, and sepsis (OR 3.87, 95% CI 1.51 to 9.91). Factors associated with sepsis include intestinal ostomy (OR 2.94, 95% CI 1.71 to 5.05), respiratory failure (OR 2.48, 95% CI 1.85 to 3.34), congenital circulatory anomalies (OR 1.58, 95% CI 1.10 to 2.28), and necrotizing enterocolitis (OR 4.38, 95% CI 2.51 to 7.67). Further investigation into modifiable factors such as small bowel ostomy and prevention of sepsis and necrotizing enterocolitis is warranted to guide surgical decision making and postoperative management.

Necrotizing fasciitis after Plastibell circumcision

Necrotizing fasciitis is a potentially life-threatening infection of subcutaneous tissues and Scarpas fascia that rarely affects neonates. We report the occurrence of this devastating infection in two neonates after routine Plastibell circumcision. These case reports highlight the presentation and management of this complication after a relatively routine and frequently performed operation. This report also emphasizes the differences between cellulitis and necrotizing fasciitis and suggests strategies for management.

The learning curve associated with pediatric laparoscopic splenectomy

BACKGROUND Laparoscopic splenectomy (LS) is technically difficult compared with open splenectomy. This report examines our experience with LS to define the learning curve. METHODS The first 49 consecutive laparoscopic splenectomies were reviewed. Indications, complications, operative time, and costs were recorded. RESULTS Indications included hereditary spherocytosis, immune thrombocytopenia purpura, beta-thalassemia, lymphoma, splenic cysts, and abscesses. Surgical time averaged 196 minutes for the first 10 patients, decreasing to 105 minutes for the last 10. Blood loss for the first 10 patients averaged 50 cc and less than 5 cc for the last 10. There were 3 complications and 1 conversion to open operation. Operative and hospital charges averaged

The association of cyclic parenteral nutrition and decreased incidence of cholestatic liver disease in patients with gastroschisis

6,670 and

Congenital Cervical Cysts, Sinuses, and Fistulae in Pediatric Surgery

13,402, respectively, for the first 10 cases compared with