Paediatrics and international child health
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Paediatr Int Child Health · May 2014
Bloodstream infections and antimicrobial resistance patterns in a South African neonatal intensive care unit.
Bloodstream infections remain a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in neonatal intensive care units (NICU) worldwide. Commonly isolated NICU pathogens are increasingly resistant to standard antimicrobial treatment regimes. ⋯ Compared with overall mortality in the NICU, that attributable solely or partly to BSI was high. Many bacterial BSI isolates were resistant to current empiric antibiotic regimens. Regular microbiological and clinical surveillance of BSI in NICUs is required to inform appropriate antibiotic protocols and monitor the impact of infection prevention strategies.
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Paediatr Int Child Health · May 2014
Randomized Controlled TrialGastric lavage for prevention of feeding problems in neonates with meconium-stained amniotic fluid: a randomised controlled trial.
The role of gastric lavage in preventing retching, vomiting and secondary meconium aspiration syndrome in neonates with meconium-stained amniotic fluid is uncertain, and no there are no definitive guidelines. ⋯ Gastric lavage in newborns with meconium-stained amniotic fluid does not prevent or reduce the occurrence of feeding problems or secondary meconium aspiration syndrome.
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Paediatr Int Child Health · May 2014
Human rhino- and enteroviruses in children with respiratory symptoms in Luanda, Angola.
The role of human rhinoviruses (HRV) and human enteroviruses (HEV) in common colds, as well as their seasonality, remains largely unknown in tropical environments. The study aimed to define the frequency and clinical features of HRV and HEV in children with respiratory symptoms in tropical Africa during autumn and winter. ⋯ HRVs play a major role in young children's respiratory infections in urban tropical Angola during autumn and winter. A better understanding is required of the seasonality and clinical outcomes of these viruses in children living in resource-poor tropical countries.
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Paediatr Int Child Health · Nov 2013
Mental health services for children exposed to armed conflict: Médecins Sans Frontières' experience in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Iraq and the occupied Palestinian territory.
Armed conflict has broad-ranging impacts on the mental health and wellbeing of children and adolescents. Mental health needs greatly exceed service provision in conflict settings, particularly for these age groups. The provision and targeting of appropriate services requires better understanding of the characteristics and requirements of children and adolescents exposed to armed conflict. ⋯ Brief trauma-focused therapy, the current MSF mental health therapeutic intervention, appears to be effective in reducing symptoms arising from the experience of trauma. Although inferences on outcomes are limited by high default rates, this provides a feasible tool for addressing the mental health needs of children exposed to armed conflict. Priorities for future research include understanding why children and adolescents constitute a small proportion of patients in some programmes, why many leave care early and how to address these issues, but this research must occur within the context of efforts to provide access to mental health services for children.