Purpose : Enteroviruses (EVs) are commonly known to cause infection, especially in infants and children. This report presents an overview of enterovirus epidemiology in central Korea. Methods : From the spring of 2005 to the autumn of 2006, we collected the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and stool samples from the pediatric patients with a febrile illness or suspected meningitis who were... |
Purpose : This study aimed to evaluate whether a shorter time from the arrival at a hospital to delivery is related to the occurrence of cerebral palsy in premature infants of less than 34 weeks of gestational age. Methods : We studied 142 newborns of less than 34 weeks of gestational age. The time from the arrival at the hospital... |
Purpose : To identify the risk factors for poor neurodevelopmental outcomes in high-risk neonates. Methods : We studied 94 infants admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit at the Sanggye Paik Hospital between January 2002 and November 2005 and evaluated the follow-up data. The following events were considered as risk factors: ≤32 weeks of gestation, very low birth weight, Apgar scores... |
Purpose : To analyze and compare various cases in which peritoneal drainage was used as the primary treatment method in preterm infants with intestinal perforation. Methods : Among the preterm infants of less than 28 weeks of gestation who were admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at the Gangnam Severance Hospital from April 2006 to April 2009, 7 who... |
Purpose : To review and determine the complications in 76 child abuse cases recorded by a multidisciplinary hospital- based child protection team between 1987 and 2007. Methods : We retrospectively reviewed the reports and medical records of child abuse cases maintained by a university hospital-based child protection team. We devised a questionnaire for standardized interviews with the victims’ guardians to... |
Purpose : Kawasaki disease—the most common cause of acquired heart disease in children—incidence is increasing yearly. Therefore, we evaluated the predictive indicators of coronary complications of Kawasaki disease based on clinical and laboratory data. Methods : Between January 2005 and March 2008, of the 201 children with Kawasaki disease treated at the Gil Hospital of Gachon University of Medicine and... |
Purpose : To evaluate the risk factors for mortality and prognostic factors in pediatric hemato-oncology patients admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). Methods : We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of pediatric hemato-oncology patients admitted at the PICU of the Asan Medical Center between September 2005 and July 2008. Patients admitted at the PICU for perioperative or terminal... |
Purpose : To characterize the pathogens and their antibiotic susceptibilities in more than 24-month-old children with urinary tract infection (UTI) and to study the Escherichia coli antimicrobial susceptibility trend. Methods : We retrospectively reviewed the record of more than 24-month-old children with UTI between January 2003 and December 2008. Positive results for 1 bacterial species with a colony count of... |
Purpose : The pathophysiology of magnesium, the second highest common compound in humans, is still unclear, especially in preterm babies. We accessed the association between total magnesium (tMg), ionized Mg (iMg), and gestational age (GA) and that between serum magnesium (sMg) and intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) in preterm babies. Methods : In all, 119 inborn preterm infants admitted between July 2006... |
Purpose : It is critical that the exact gestational age of a newborn baby, especially premature baby, be determined to evaluate the status of a disease and its management and to estimate the prognosis of a patient. This study aimed to investigate an easy and accurate method to estimate gestational age on cranial ultrasound, requiring minimal additional time and equipment. Methods... |
Purpose : To observe the abnormal white matter findings on the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of very-low- birth-weight (VLBW) infant brains at term-equivalent age and to determine the clinical risk factors for the development of periventricular leukomalacia (PVL). Methods : In all, MRI was performed in 98 VLBW infants and the white matter abnormalities were observed. Clinical risk factors... |
Purpose : This study compares the maternal characteristics and birth outcomes of infants of Asian immigrant mothers from developing countries with those of the infants of Korean mothers. Methods : In this multicenter and retrospective study, Asian immigrant women who had delivered between January 2005 and June 2008 were enrolled from9 Medical Centers. In all, 333 births to Asian immigrant... |
Purpose : Metabolic syndrome (MS), characterized by obesity and insulin resistance, elicits risk factors such as hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and glucose intolerance with additive effects on atherosclerosis, leading to cardiovascular diseases. The purposes of this study were to evaluate the prevalence of MS among overweight and obese adolescents and to investigate the impact of obesity on the cardiovascular system. Methods : In... |
Purpose : Recently, complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has been increasingly used in children. Studies have shown that 34% of adults and 11% of children use CAM in the USA and Canada. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence and patterns of CAM use in elementary children in Korea. Methods : From July to August 2007, parents... |
Purpose : To evaluate current feeding practices and maternal nutritional knowledge on complementary feeding. Methods:Mothers of babies aged 9-15 months who visited pediatric clinics of 14 general hospitals between September and December 2008 were asked to fill questionnaires. Data from 1,078 questionnaires were analyzed. Results : Complementary food was introduced at 4-7 months in 89% of babies. Home-made rice gruel was the... |
Purpose : Medical therapy is the initial treatment for children with Graves disease to avoid complications of other treatments. However, optimal treatment for childhood Graves disease is controversial because most patients require relatively long periods of medical therapy and relapse is common after medication discontinuation. Therefore, this study aimed to search clinical or biochemical characteristics that could be used as... |
Purpose:The aim of this study is to explore the effect of the Toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9) expressed in plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) that respond to antigen to Th2 immune deviation in allergic patients. Methods:Subjects consisted of 19 allergic patients and 17 healthy volunteers. Skin prick tests and nasal provocation tests were performed for the two groups. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs)... |
Purpose:Epilepsy of child may cause high level of psychosocial difficulties for parents including stigmatization and stress and therefore worsen their quality of life (QOL). The purpose of this study was to evaluate the mediating effect of perceived stigma against epilepsy on QOL among parents with epileptic child. Methods:Two hundred and sixty parents of epileptic child recruited from five separated university... |
Purpose:Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) is a fundamental parameter in assessing renal function and predicting the progression of chronic renal disease. Because the use of serum creatinine has several disadvantages, many studies have investigated the use of cystatin C for estimating GFR. We compared creatinine clearance and GFR with formulas using serum creatinine and cystatin C. Methods:We retrospectively analyzed 211 patients... |
Purpose:Thyroid hormone is essential for development of the brain in early life. Thyroid dysfunction is more common in the first 2-4 postnatal weeks of life in premature infants than in term infants. This study aimed to identify the prevalence and clinical course of thyroid dysfunction in prematurity. Methods:Premature infants admitted to and given neonatal screenings at Dankook University Hospital between... |
Purpose:Being small for gestational age (SGA) is a risk factor of short stature in children. Genetic background such as mid-parental height (MPH) is known to influence growth of children born SGA. We studied the relationship between growth of children born SGA and MPH and studied the effects of insulin-like growth factor (IGF-I) and insulin-like growth factor binding protein 3 (IGFBP-3)... |
Purpose:To investigate the effects of angiotensin II inhibition on the epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) in the developing kidney, we tested the expression of EMT markers and nestin in angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor-treated kidneys. Methods:Newborn rat pups were treated with enalapril (30 mg/kg/d) or a vehicle for 7 days. Immunohistochemistry for the expression of α-smooth muscle actin (SMA), E-cadherin, vimentin, and nestin were... |
Purpose:We performed this study in order to investigate the effect of direct renin inhibition on an experimental animal model with nephrotoxic serum nephritis and tried to give useful information for clinical research and renin inhibitor treatment. Methods:Thirty BALB/c 6-week-old male mice were divided into 4 groups: control group (CO, n=5), control-treatment group with aliskiren (CT, n=5), disease group (DO, n=10), and disease treatment... |
Purpose:We evaluated the effectiveness of treatment and cardiac complications of replacing a high dose of aspirin with a high dose of ibuprofen for children in acute phase of Kawasaki disease. We also analyzed the possibility of replacing a high dose of aspirin with a high dose of ibuprofen to prevent complications such as Reye s syndrome caused by aspirin. Methods:One hundred eight children... |
Purpose:The aim was to investigate the clinical characteristics and responses to growth hormone (GH) therapy in children with attenuated growth who showed normal GH responses to GH stimulation tests (GHST). Methods:The study included 39 patients with height velocity (HV) of less than 4 cm/yr and normal GHST results. Clinical characteristics of patients were analyzed retrospectively. Results:Eleven were born as small for gestational age (SGA)... |
Purpose:Although renal ultrasonography (USG) has improved the detection rate of hydronephrosis (HN), its clinical courses and postnatal management remains controversial. Here, we reviewed the clinical features of patients with HN according to the grades. Methods:We retrospectively studied 207 patients who were regularly followed-up among 367 patients with HN detected by renal USG postnatally between April 1998 and December 2007. These patients were grouped... |
Purpose:The arterial switch operation (ASO) has become the preferred procedure for the surgical management of transposition of the great arteries (TGA). We conducted a retrospective evaluation of our experience in 30 patients seen from January 2003 to July 2008, in order to determine outcomes and related risk factors after the arterial switch operation. Methods:Patients charts, surgical reports, and echocardiograms were retrospectively reviewed. And... |
Purpose:The differential diagnosis for a pulmonary nodule is intriguing in cancer patients. Metastasis might be a preferential diagnosis, and yet possibilities of other medical conditions still exist. Pulmonary tuberculosis should be enlisted in the differential diagnosis for a pulmonary nodule in cancer patients in Korea. This study was aimed at analyzing the incidence and clinical features of pulmonary tuberculosis that were misdiagnosed as... |
Purpose:This study investigated the predictive factors for identifying infection-prone febrile infants younger than three months. Methods:We conducted a retrospective study of 167 infants younger than three months with an axillary temperature >38℃ who were hospitalized between 2006 and 2008. If they met any of the following criteria, positive blood culture, CSF WBC ≥ 11/mm3 or positive CSF culture, urinalysis WBC ≥6/HPF and positive... |
Purpose:Advances in neonatal intensive care have improved the survival rate of low-birth-weight infants, but mild bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) with the accompanying need for prolonged oxygen supplement remains problematic. Maternal chorioamnionitis and neonatal ventilator care affect the development of BPD. This study aimed to examine whether maternal chorioamnionitis or neonatal ventilator care affect the development of BPD dependently or independently. Methods:We performed a retrospective study... |