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Over the last five years, the use of biological materials and data derived from children for research purposes has solicited intense debates within the ethical community internationally. Whereas the reflections on ethical, legal and social issues of biobanks storing newborn blood samples for therapeutic aims have started earlier - especially in relation to the development of both public and private cord blood banks - the attention for the ethical, legal and social aspects of pediatric research biobanks has emerged later in light of the pioneering debates on the ethical aspects of adult biorepositories. Nowadays, children biobanks are discussed in number of papers emphasizing the need for a special attention to the unique issues that they raise. This chapter offers a reading of typical ethical, legal and social issues related to children research biobanks viewed under the lens of health professionals involved in pediatric biobanking processes. Although it is limited to the views of European health professionals, it could serve as starting point for broader analyses comprising other geographically or culturally based communities.

Over the last five years, the use of biological materials and data derived from children for research purposes has solicited intense debates within the ethical community internationally. Whereas the reflections on ethical, legal and social issues of biobanks storing newborn blood samples for therapeutic aims have started earlier - especially in relation to the development of both public and private cord blood banks - the attention for the ethical, legal and social aspects of pediatric research biobanks has emerged later in light of the pioneering debates on the ethical aspects of adult biorepositories. Nowadays, children biobanks are discussed in number of papers emphasizing the need for a special attention to the unique issues that they raise. This chapter offers a reading of typical ethical, legal and social issues related to children research biobanks viewed under the lens of health professionals involved in pediatric biobanking processes. Although it is limited to the views of European health professionals, it could serve as starting point for broader analyses comprising other geographically or culturally based communities.

Introduction It is recognized that vitamin D status is often inadequate (<50 nmol/L) in epileptic children, mainly because some anticonvulsant drugs induce the enzymes responsible for its metabolism. The purpose of the present study was to address vitamin D status among children and adolescents treated with anticonvulsant drugs and control subjects who reside in Southern Switzerland, a high solar radiation region. Methods Between January and May 2013, total serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D was assessed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry in 58 children and adolescents with epilepsy and 29 controls residing in Southern Switzerland. Dark-skinned individuals, females wearing dress styles covering practically the whole body and subjects with body mass index ≥85th percentile for age and sex were excluded. Results Concentration of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D was similar in epilepsy patients (48 [37-62] nmol/L; median and interquartile range) and controls (53 [47-64] nmol/L). An inadequate serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration was common both among patients (55%) and control subjects (34%). Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D was significantly lower among patients treated with anticonvulsant drugs that induce the metabolism of vitamin D (30 [21-51] nmol/L) than among the remaining patients (51 [40-65] nmol/L) and controls. Conclusions The present study indicates a relevant tendency towards inadequate vitamin D status among children with and without anticonvulsant drug management who reside in Southern Switzerland. This tendency is more prominent in patients treated with anticonvulsant drugs that induce the metabolism of 25-hydroxyvitamin D.