Sacral dimples are a common cutaneous anomaly in infants. Spine ultrasonography (USG) is an effective and safe screening tool for patients with a sacral dimple. The aim of this study was to determine the clinical manifestations in patients with an isolated sacral dimple and to review the management of spinal cord abnormalities identified with USG.

We reviewed clinical records and collected...

The efficacy of percutaneous stent implantation for congenital heart disease (CHD) in Korea, where stent availability is limited, has not been determined. This study evaluated the acute and midterm results of stent implantation in different CHD subgroups.

Stents were implanted in 75 patients with 81 lesions: (1) pulmonary artery stenosis (PAS) group, 56 lesions in 51 patients; (2) coarctation of the...

Despite the availability of molecular methods, identification of the causative virus in children with acute respiratory infections (ARIs) has proven difficult as the same viruses are often detected in asymptomatic children.

Multiplex reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction assays were performed to detect 15 common respiratory viruses in children under 15 years of age who were hospitalized with ARI between January 2013...

Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a hyperinflammatory syndrome with many causes, including Kawasaki disease (KD). The purpose of this study was to identify the laboratory tests needed to easily differentiate KD with HLH from incomplete KD alone.

We performed a retrospective study on patients diagnosed with incomplete KD and incomplete KD with HLH (HLH-KD) between January 2012 and March 2015. We compared...

This study aimed to analyse laboratory values according to fever duration, and evaluate the relationship across these values during the acute phase of Kawasaki disease (KD) to aid in the early diagnosis for early-presenting KD and incomplete KD patients.

Clinical and laboratory data of patients with KD (n=615) were evaluated according to duration of fever at presentation, and were compared between...

Sepsis is a major cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality. Early diagnosis is a major problem because of the lack of specific clinical signs. Therefore, a reliable diagnostic marker is needed to guide the use of antimicrobial agents. The objective of our study was to assess the value of proadrenomedullin (pro-ADM) in establishing the diagnosis and evaluating the prognosis of...

Infantile spasms, also known as West syndrome, is an age-specific epileptic seizure. Most patients with this condition also exhibit delayed development. This study aimed to determine the effect of long-term prenatal stress on susceptibility to infantile spasms.

We subjected pregnant rats to acute or chronic immobilization stress. Resulting offspring received N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (15 mg/kg, intraperitoneally) on postnatal day 15, and their...

The association between hypercalciuria and febrile convulsion is controversial. The present study aimed to investigate the statistical association between hypercalciuria and childhood febrile convulsions.

Overall, 160 children aged 6 months to 5 years, including 80 children with febrile convulsion and 80 febrile children without convulsion (comparison group), were recruited. All laboratory tests, including 24-hour urine calcium, were undertaken in an academic...

Obesity has been associated with higher total blood mercury levels, based on animal studies; however, studies that focus on children and adolescents are lacking. We aimed to assess the association between total blood mercury levels and the incidence of overweight and abdominal obesity in Korean adolescents.

The study population comprised 1,567 adolescents (793 boys and 774 girls; aged 10–19 years), who...

Routine screening for toxoplasmosis, rubella, cytomegalovirus (CMV), and herpes simplex virus (TORCH) in intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) and small for gestational age (SGA) neonates has become a common practice. However, the incidence of TORCH varies across countries, and the cost of TORCH testing may be disadvantageous compared to disease-specific screening. To evaluate the efficacy of TORCH screening, the medical charts...

This study aimed to investigate the clinical and socioenvironmental characteristics of sudden cardiorespiratory arrest after venipuncture in children.

We conducted a retrospective email-based survey of all members of the Korean Pediatric Society. The questionnaire included items on patient demographics, socioenvironmental circumstances of the venipuncture, type of cardiorespiratory arrest, symptoms and signs, treatment, prognosis, and presumed cause of the arrest.

Fourteen patients were...

This study aimed to evaluate the clinical findings in pediatric rhabdomyolysis and the predictive factors for acute kidney injury (AKI) in Korean children.

Medical records of 39 Korean children, who were newly diagnosed with rhabdomyolysis from January 2008 to December 2015, were retrospectively analyzed. The diagnosis was made from the medical history, elevated serum creatinine kinase level >1,000 IU/L, and plasma...

The present study aimed to determine the relationship between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) level and Urinary tract infections (UTIs) in children.

In this case-control study, 70 children with UTI (case group) were compared with 70 healthy children (control group) in terms of serum 25(OH)D levels. The children were between 1 month and 12 years of age. Serum 25(OH)D levels were measured...

Timely antibiotic therapy in selected cases of diarrhea associated with bacterial infections can reduce the duration and severity of illness and prevent complications. The availability of a predictive index before identification of causative bacteria would aid in the choice of a therapeutic agent.

The study included patients admitted to the pediatrics unit at Konyang University Hospital for acute inflammatory diarrhea from...

Frequent desaturation due to immature incoordination of suck-swallow-breathing in preterm infants can influence multiple organs such as the heart, lungs, and brain, which can then affect growth and development. Most notably in preterm infants, feeding desaturation may even affect pulmonary function during gavage feeding. Because respiratory muscle activities may reflect the work required during respiration, we evaluated the differences in...

Small for gestational age (SGA) is confusingly defined as birth weight (BW) either below 3rd percentile or 10th percentile for infants. This study aimed to compare postnatal catch-up growth between SGA groups according to different definitions.

Data of 129 infants born with BW below the 10th percentile and admitted to Korea University Anam Hospital and Ansan Hospital were retrospectively reviewed. Height...

Cardiomyopathy is becoming the leading cause of death in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy because mechanically assisted lung ventilation and assisted coughing have helped resolve respiratory complications. To clarify cardiopulmonary function, we compared cardiac function between the home ventilator-assisted and non-ventilator-assisted groups.

We retrospectively reviewed patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy from January 2010 to March 2016 at Gangnam Severance Hospital. Demographic...

Although the prognosis is generally good in patients with intermediate-risk neuroblastoma, no consensus has been reached on the ideal treatment regimen. This study analyzed treatment outcomes and toxicities in patients younger than 18 months with stage 4 MYCN nonamplified neuroblastoma.

We retrospectively analyzed 20 patients younger than 18 months newly diagnosed with stage 4 MYCN nonamplified neuroblastoma between January 2009 and...

Tularemia is an infection caused by Francisella tularensis. Its diagnosis and treatment may be difficult in many cases. The aim of this study was to evaluate treatment modalities for pediatric tularemia patients who do not respond to medical treatment.

A single-center, retrospective study was performed. A total of 19 children with oropharyngeal tularemia were included.

Before diagnosis, the duration of symptoms in...

Human adenovirus infection mimics Kawasaki disease (KD) but can be detected in KD patients. The aim of this study was to determine the clinical differences between KD with adenovirus infection and only adenoviral infection and to identify biomarkers for prediction of adenovirus-positive KD from isolated adenoviral infection.

A total of 147 patients with isolated adenovirus were identified by quantitative polymerase chain...

The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of urinary biomarkers, such as neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (uNGAL) and β-2 microglobulin (uB2MG), in early detection of urinary tract infection (UTI) in infants aged <3 months with fever.

A total of 422 infants aged <3 months (male:female=267:155; mean age, 56.4 days), who were admitted for fever, were retrospectively included in...

To determine the relationship between vaginal reflux (VR) and urinary tract infection (UTI) in female children aged <36 months.

A single center retrospective study was performed for 191 girls aged <36 months, with a diagnosis of febrile UTI, who underwent a voiding cystourethrography (VCUG) for assessment of vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) at Sanggye Paik Hospital. Fifty-one girls, who underwent VCUG for assessment...

To differentiate adenoviral pharyngoconjunctival fever (PCF) from acute Kawasaki disease (KD) using laboratory tests before results of virus-real time polymerase chain reaction and ophthalmologic examination are obtained.

Baseline patient characteristics and laboratory measurements were compared between 40 patients with adenovirus infection and 123 patients with KD.

The patients with adenovirus infection were generally older than those with KD (median: 3.9 years vs....