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Background: Music learning induces significant neural changes, enhancing auditory, verbal, and visuospatial skills, IQ, and speech perception. Research studies reveal structural and functional brain plasticity due to music training in adults and children. While musical abilities are linked to formal training, the existence of "musical sleepers" with heightened speech perception without formal training is noteworthy in adults. This study addresses the gap in understanding such phenomena in children, exploring psychophysical abilities in musically adept children, and aiming to impact rehabilitation models. Materials and method: A pre-experimental study involved 164 typically developing children (mean age: 9.93) without musical training. Musical abilities were evaluated using the abbreviated version of Montreal Battery for Evaluation of Musical Abilities (MBEMA) test in DMDX software, covering melody, rhythm, and memory subtests. Psychophysical tests in MATLAB assessed temporal, frequency, intensity, timbre, and binaural resolution. Results: Using a median split based on MBEMA test scores (median: 42), 84 children exhibited poor musical abilities, while 80 showed good ones. Descriptive statistics for MBEMA scores and psychophysical tests were conducted. As data did not follow normal distribution, non-parametric inferential statistics were employed. Mann–Whitney U tests revealed significant differences favouring good musical abilities in all assessments: gap deduction (p = 0.01), pitch discrimination at 500 Hz and 4 kHz (p = 0.00), intensity discrimination at 500 Hz (p = 0.00) and 4 kHz (p = 0.01), profile analysis (p = 0.01), interaural level difference (p = 0.023), and interaural time difference (p = 0.038). Spearman correlation showed highest correlation with pitch discrimination at 500 Hz (r = − 0.538), 4 kHz (− 0.416), intensity discrimination at 4 kHz (r = − 0.367), and 500 Hz (r = − 0.311), profile analysis (r = − 0.313), interaural level difference (r = − 0.276), and gap deduction (r = − 0.235). All were significant (p < 0.01), except for the interaural time difference. Conclusion: Children excelling in music surpassed those with weaker abilities in psychophysical tasks. This echoes past research, underscoring auditory discrimination's influence on musical skills in untrained children. These results potentially support the concept of musical sleepers in children. Key predictors include pitch discrimination, while interaural time difference exhibited minimal correlation. Utilising such assessments may predict musical training outcomes for children with auditory disorders, but additional robust statistical investigation is necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Accidental ingestion of foreign bodies in children is critical, as the inability to effectively communicate can potentially lead to devastating consequences. We aimed to determine the epidemiology of foreign body ingestion and variability according to age, gender, type, and location of foreign body, and describe its management. Aim and Objective: The aim was to study the various types of foreign body ingestions in children admitted to pediatric surgery and their management. Materials and Methods: A retrospective study was conducted from January 2020 to June 2022 on children under the age of 12 years with a confirmed diagnosis of foreign body ingestion. Patients were clinically and radiologically assessed, after which standard protocols were followed wherein patients were followed by either observation or emergent management. Emergent management included removal of the foreign body by either endoscopy or surgery. Comparisons among multiple age groups, gender, type of foreign body, location of foreign body, and their management were analyzed. Results: Out of 99 subjects in our study, there were 76 boys and 23 girls. The median age of presentation was 5 years. Most children were asymptomatic at presentation. The most frequently ingested foreign body was a coin in all age groups. The majority of the foreign bodies were suspected to be in the small bowel. The foreign bodies that had crossed the duodenojejunal flexure (n = 74, 74.7%) were managed conservatively with the observation of a variable period of a minimum of 24 h and a maximum of 48 h. 21 cases were managed by endoscopic removal, while three cases required surgical intervention. Conclusions: Overall, the most common gastrointestinal foreign body was a coin in all age groups. Button battery is the most worrisome foreign body; however, depending on its position, it can be managed conservatively. Upper GI foreign bodies can be safely removed endoscopically. Parental counseling is very important for the prevention of ingestion of foreign bodies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose was to study the correlation between age at surgery and functional recovery after infant pyeloplasty. Materials and Methods: All infants who underwent pyeloplasty were analyzed retrospectively in this multicenter study. Anteroposterior diameter (APD) >2 cm, split renal function (SRF) <40%, and Society of Fetal Urology (SFu) grade 3-4 were surgical indications. Based on the age at pyeloplasty, they were divided into Group 1 (1-3 months) and Group 2 (4-12 months). APD and SRF were compared before and after surgery in both groups. The fractional recoverable function (post-SRF-pre-SRF)/(50-pre-SRF) ><100 was correlated with age. Results: Fifty-one infants underwent pyeloplasty (mean age: 1.6 months - Group 1 and 7.2 months - Group 2). The mean APD decreased from 3 cm to 1.2 cm in Group 1 while 2.8 cm to 2 cm in Group 2 (P = 0.001). The mean SRF increased from 32.28% to 42.81% in Group 1 while 31%-34.18% in Group 2. SRF recovery was significantly higher in Group 1 compared to Group 2 (P = 0.001). Regression analysis showed a weak negative correlation (r = -0.2792) between age at surgery and renal function improvement. Conclusion: Functional recovery after pyeloplasty is better when done earlier (1-3 months), as this gives the growing kidney the best opportunity to recover. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: According to the World Health Organization, close to 21% of India's population may be affected by intestinal parasites, accounting for 39 million disability-adjusted life years, which may likely be due to substandard sanitation practices and insufficient personal hygiene standards. This research was conducted with the aim of determining the prevalence of helminthic infections among school-aged children in the South Canara district of India. Materials and Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study involving school children from nursery to the 8th Grade in the South Canara district of Karnataka, India. The presence of various intestinal parasites in different age groups was determined by performing routine stool microscopy. Modified acid-fast staining was performed for stool samples collected from children <5 years of age for the detection of intestinal coccidian parasites. Statistical analysis was carried out to analyze age-related trends in relation to the prevalence of commonly detected intestinal parasites. Results: Intestinal parasites were identified in 10 of the 253 students (3.9%), with the highest incidence observed in the age group of 7-10 years (1.9%). The most prevalent parasite identified was the cysts of Giardia lamblia, with a prevalence of 7.54%, followed by Ascaris lumbricoides and hookworm, each having a prevalence of 5.66%. Of the 253 students, 92.2% practiced handwashing with soap after defecation, while 7.8% did not use soap. The handwashing practices did not significantly vary across different age groups. Clinically, pallor was observed in 64.2% of the individuals. Conclusion: Giardiasis was the most common parasitic infection, followed by soil-transmitted helminths such as Ascariasis and hookworm. The level of hygiene practices among children exceeded the prevailing national and state standards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The assessment of growth is essential during preschool age, more particularly in pediatric neurological examination, where measurement of the head circumference plays a vital role. Head circumference (HC) is a simple and non-invasive anthropometric measure. Also known as the frontal occipital circumference, HC has been cautiously used to assess the frequencies of undernutrition among preschool children. Material & Methods: The current study was done on 782 preschool children (boys= 384, girls = 398) aged 24-60 months ICDS beneficiaries of Jalpaiguri by using WHO (2007) recommended cut-off points for head circumference for age. Statistical analyses were also done to determine age and sex variations in Head Circumference. Results: Age combined rates of Head Circumference based moderate undernutrition for boys was 21.87 % and for girls was 25.37 %. Age-combined severe undernutrition among boys and girls were 5.72% and 6.53 %, respectively. The higher percentage of malnourished girls was seen in the previous study done on Midnapore and Bangalkot and a higher percentage of malnourished boys was seen than the Midnapore children. The present study reveals Girls were more affected by moderate and severe undernutrition compared to boys. Conclusion: Head Circumference is an indicator of brain development so initiative should be taken for regular monitoring of ICDS beneficiaries to improve the nutritional condition of preschool children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Brain lesions can be caused by varied etiological factors like neoplastic, infectious, inflammatory and vascular diseases. Accurate diagnosis in very important for correct neurosurgical treatment. A retrospective histopathological study of brain lesions is of utmost importance because as it can demonstrate the changes in the spectrum of brain lesions, burden of disease in the community, can reveal the possible risk factors and can suggest probable treatment methods for various neoplastic and non neoplastic brain lesions. Aim: To evaluate the incidence, age distribution, gender distribution, and histopathological spectrum of neoplastic and non neoplastic lesions of brain. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study was conducted in the Department of Pathology at Narayana Medical College, Nellore, Andhra Pradesh, India, from January 2019 to December 2021. Total 216 cases were studied. The tumours were classified under World Health Organization (WHO) classification. To test the mean difference between the groups, Independent sample t-test was done. Results: Out of 216 cases, 180 (83%) were neoplastic and 36 (17%) were non neoplastic lesions. The male: female ratio was 1.03:1. Non neoplastic lesions were common in males (22, 61.11%), while neoplastic lesions were common in females (92, 51.11%). The most common age group affected was 41-50 years (55, 25.46%). Astrocytoma (41, 22.77%) followed by meningioma (40, 22.22%) were the common neoplastic tumours and haematoma(7, 19.44%) was the most common non neoplastic lesion in adults. Common tumour in children (<18 years) was diffuse fibrillary astrocytoma (3/11, 27.27%)and chronic inflammatory pathology was the common non neoplastic lesion (2/11, 18.18%). Conclusion: Majority of cases were seen in 41-50 years age group. Astrocytoma was the common neoplastic tumour and haematoma was the common non neoplastic lesion in adults. Diffuse fibrillary astrocytoma was the common tumour and chronic inflammatory pathology was the common non neoplastic lesion in children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The objective was to delineate the clinico-epidemiological characteristics of hospitalized children with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)-associated acute lower respiratory tract infection (RSV-ALRI) during its recent outbreak and to find out the independent predictors of pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) admission. Materials and methods: Children aged between 1 month and 12 years who tested positive for RSV were included. Multivariate analysis was performed to identify the independent predictors and predictive scores were developed from the β-coefficients. Receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) was generated and the area under the curve (AUC) was calculated to assess the overall precision. The performance of sum scores in predicting PICU need, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and positive and negative likelihood ratios (LR+ and LR-) were calculated for each cutoff value. Results: The proportion of RSV positivity was 72.58%. A total of 127 children were included with a median [interquartile range (IQR)] age of 6 (2-12) months, of whom 61.42% were males and 33.07% had underlying comorbidity. Tachypnea, cough, rhinorrhea, and fever were predominant clinical presentations while hypoxia and extrapulmonary manifestations were present in 30.71% and 14.96% of children, respectively. About 30% required PICU admission, and 24.41% developed complications. Premature birth, age below 1 year, presence of underlying CHD, and hypoxia were independent predictors. The AUC [95% confidence interval (CI)] was 0.869 (0.843-0.935). Sum score below 4 had 97.3% sensitivity and 97.1% NPV whereas sum score above 6 had 98.9% specificity, 89.7% PPV, 81.3% NPV, 46.2 LR+, and 0.83 LR- to predict PICU needs. Conclusion: Awareness of these independent predictors and application of the novel scoring system will be beneficial for busy clinicians in planning the level of care needed, thereby optimizing PICU resource utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anaemia control programmes in India are hampered by a lack of representative evidence on anaemia prevalence, burden and associated factors for adolescents. The aim of this study was to: (1) describe the national and subnational prevalence, severity and burden of anaemia among Indian adolescents; (2) examine factors associated with anaemia at national and regional levels. Data (n = 14,673 individuals aged 10–19 years) were from India's Comprehensive National Nutrition Survey (CNNS, 2016–2018). CNNS used a multistage, stratified, probability proportion to size cluster sampling design. Prevalence was estimated using globally comparable age‐ and sex‐specific cutoffs, using survey weights for biomarker sample collection. Burden analysis used prevalence estimates and projected population from 2011 Census data. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to analyse factors (diet, micronutrient deficiencies, haemoglobinopathies, sociodemographic factors, environment) associated with anaemia. Anaemia was present in 40% of girls and 18% of boys, equivalent to 72 million adolescents in 2018, and varied by region (girls 29%–46%; boys 11%–28%) and state (girls 7%–62%; boys 4%–32%). Iron deficiency (ferritin < 15 μg/L) was the strongest predictor of anaemia (odds ratio [OR]: 4.68, 95% confidence interval [CI]: [3.21,6.83]), followed by haemoglobinopathies (HbA2 > 3.5% or any HbS) (OR: 2.81, 95% CI: [1.66,4.74]), vitamin A deficiency (serum retinol <20 ng/ml) (OR: 1.86, 95% CI: [1.23,2.80]) and zinc deficiency (serum zinc < 70 μg/L) (OR: 1.32, 95% CI: [1.02,1.72]). Regional models show heterogeneity in the strength of association between factors and anaemia by region. Adolescent anaemia control programmes in India should continue to address iron deficiency, strengthen strategies to identify haemoglobinopathies and other micronutrient deficiencies, and further explore geographic variation in associated factors. Key messages: The Comprehensive National Nutrition Survey (CNNS) 2016–2018 is the only nationally representative survey to measure haemoglobin, haemoglobinopathies, biomarkers of micronutrient deficiencies, diet and social factors in Indian adolescents aged 10–19 years.Using CNNS data, we found that 28.5% of adolescents (girls: 39.6%, boys: 17.6%) were anaemic, with variation by region or state.Our prevalence estimates translate to 72 million adolescents being anaemic, with Uttar Pradesh having twice as many anaemic adolescents as any other state.Iron deficiency, haemoglobinopathies, vitamin A deficiency and zinc deficiency were associated with an increased risk of anaemia; these associations may vary subnationally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Indian children are known to have variations in the tibiofemoral angle as compared to children of other ethnicities. There is no study describing radiographic angles in coronal plane in Indian children. Our aim was to evaluate coronal plane alignment in Indian children. Methods: Database of radiographs between January 2011 and December 2019 was searched. Full-length standing radiographs of patients younger than 16 years with unilateral congenital or post-traumatic or post-infective deformity were included. The radiographs were measured for mechanical lateral distal femoral angle (mLDFA), medial proximal tibial angle (MPTA), tibiofemoral angle (TFA), hip–knee–ankle (HKA) angle, lateral distal tibial angle, mechanical axis deviation (MAD), and mechanical lateral proximal femoral angle. Results: Analysis of 221 lower limbs of 177 children is presented. There were 103 (58.2%) boys and 74 (41.8%) girls. Mean age was 8 years, 6 months (range: 2 years, 1 month to 15 years, 11 months). The mean mLDFA remained constant between 87° and 88° after the age of 5 years. The mean MPTA remained around 88° after 8 years of age. The mean MAD remained within 4 mm of the midpoint of the knee after the age of 8 years. The adult value of TFA was achieved after 8 years of age. The mLDFA, MPTA, and mLPFA are significant predictors of change in the TFA. Conclusion: The development of tibiofemoral angle in Indian children is slightly different than children of other ethnicities. We recommend using age-specific values for Indian children younger than 8 years of age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Benign renal tumors are extremely rare and were studied here. This series also includes a renal teratoma in a horseshoe kidney, probably only the second in the pediatric literature. Materials and Methods: Retrospective review of children with benign renal tumors operated between 2006 and 2018 at one center. Results: Twelve patients (M:F ratio 10:2), age range 3 weeks (31-week gestation) to 13 years presented with large palpable renal swelling (n = 12) and hematuria (n = 3). Computed tomography (CT) scan showed features typical of the tumor. Final histopathology (age group [mean]) showed: multilocular cystic nephroma (MLCN) - n = 5 (41.7%), (11–16 months [13.6]); congenital mesoblastic nephroma (CMN) - n = 4 (33.3%) (classic 1, cellular 3) (0.75–5 months [2.125]); mature cystic teratoma - n = 1 (8.3%): (48 months, in a horseshoe kidney), and angiomyolipoma (AML) - n = 2 (16.7%) (144 months [sporadic] and 156 months [tuberous sclerosis]) One patient with cystic teratoma with no calcification on CT scan received pre-operative chemotherapy as fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) reported malignant small blue cell tumor. Nephroureterectomy with Gerota's fascia could be done easily in all without intraoperative complications. Delay in presentation in MLCN and CMN led to increased symptoms and CT scan changes. All patients did well in 1.5–12 years (median 3 years) follow-up including cellular mesoblastic nephroma. Conclusions: Benign renal tumors often occur in specific age groups but may overlap that of Wilms tumor. Proper interpretation of clinical presentation, CT scan, and FNAC findings help in avoiding preoperative chemotherapy. Upfront nephroureterectomy is curative. Histopathological findings decide further treatment. Children with AML and tuberous sclerosis need lifelong follow-up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]