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Background: Definite history is not always present in children with foreign body aspiration (FBA), hence necessitating a high index of suspicion., Objective: To assess the predictive value of clinico-radiological variables among children presenting with features of suspected FBA and to document their course in a tertiary care teaching hospital., Materials and Methods: In this retrospective observational study, we included children aged below 15 years presenting with clinical features of suspected FBA. Data was obtained from case records. Multivariable binary logistic regression analysis (MVA) was performed to determine statistically significant predictors of FBA, and Weighted Risk Scores (WRS) were calculated to determine the significance of the model., Results: Of the 296 children included in the study and having undergone bronchoscopy, 84.5% were toddlers; 269 (90.87%) had a foreign body (FB) removed. Organic material was commonly found with 64.3% being peanut and right main bronchus, the commonest lodging site (50.6%). Of the 54 (18%) children with symptomatic but unwitnessed FBA, 45 (83.3%) had a FB retrieved. Choking with sudden onset cough, stridor, unilateral decreased breath sounds, abnormal chest radiograph, unilateral hyperinflation and mediastinal shift correlated with FBA ( P < 0.05). MVA confirmed statistical significance with choking with sudden onset cough to predict FBA ( P = 0.024) with overall sensitivity and specificity of 60.9% and 77.8%, respectively. Total WRS with cut-off >2 showed good power of discrimination with sensitivity, specificity and AUC of 60.2%, 77.8% and 0.704%, respectively., Conclusions: The proposed predictive value-based scoring system enhances accuracy in decision-making regarding bronchoscopy in children with suspected FBA., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care.)

Background: In a prior report, no patient with rodenticidal hepatotoxicity who met Kochi criteria (MELD score ≥36 or baseline INR ≥6 with hepatic encephalopathy) (PMID: 26310868) for urgent liver transplantation survived with medical management alone. Plasma exchange (PLEX) may improve survival in these patients., Objectives: We describe our experience with low-volume PLEX (PLEX-LV) in treating rodenticide ingestion induced hepatotoxicity in children., Methods: From prospectively collected database of rodenticidal hepatotoxicity patients managed as in-patient with department of Hepatology from December 2017 to August 2021, we retrospectively studied outcomes in children (≤18 years). Hepatotoxicity was categorized as acute liver injury (ALI, coagulopathy alone) or acute liver failure (ALF, coagulopathy and encephalopathy). Kochi criteria was used to assess need for urgent liver transplantation. The primary study outcome was one-month survival., Results: Of the 110 rodenticidal hepatotoxicity patients, 32 children (females: 56%; age: 16 [4.7-18] years; median, range) constituted the study patients. The study patients presented 4 (1-8) days after poison consumption (impulsive suicidal intent:31, accidental:1). Twenty children (62%) had ALI [MELD: 18 (8-36)] and 12 (38%) had ALF [MELD: 37 (24-45)].All children received standard medical care, including N-acetyl cysteine; ALF patients also received anti-cerebral edema measures. None of the patient families opted for liver transplantation. Seventeen children (ALI: 6, ALF: 11) were treated with PLEX-LV (3 [1-5] sessions, volume of plasma exchanged per session: 26 [13-38] ml/kg body weight) and peri-procedure low dose prednisolone.At 1 month, 28 of the 32 children (87.5%) were alive (4 ALF patients died). Of 10 children who met Kochi listing criteria for urgent liver transplantation, two children were ineligible for PLEX-LV (due to hemodynamic instability) and of the remaining 8 children treated by PLEX-LV, 6 (75%) survived., Conclusions: PLEX-LV shows promise as an effective non-liver transplant treatment in children with rodenticidal hepatotoxicity., (© 2022 Indian National Association for Study of the Liver. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Pediatric shock, especially septic shock, is a significant healthcare burden in low-income countries. Early recognition and management of shock in children improves patient outcome. Simulation-based education (SBE) for shock recognition and prompt management prepares interdisciplinary pediatric emergency teams in crisis management. COVID-19 pandemic restrictions on in-person simulation led us to the development of telesimulation for shock. We hypothesized that telesimulation training would improve pediatric shock recognition, process of care, and patient outcomes in both simulated and real patient settings., Materials and Methods: We conducted a prospective quasi-experimental interrupted time series cohort study over 9 months. We conducted 40 telesimulation sessions for 76 participants in teams of 3 or 4, utilizing the video telecommunication platform (Zoom©). Trained observers recorded time-critical interventions on real patients for the pediatric emergency teams composed of residents, fellows, and nurses. Data were collected on 332 pediatric patients in shock (72% of whom were in septic shock) before, during, and after the intervention. The data included the first hour time-critical intervention checklist, patient hemodynamic status at the end of the first hour, time for the resolution of shock, and team leadership skills in the emergency room., Results: There was a significant improvement in the percent completion of tasks by the pediatric emergency team in simulated scenarios (69% in scenario 1 vs. 93% in scenario 2; p < 0.001). In real patients, completion of tasks as per time-critical steps reached 100% during and after intervention compared to the pre-intervention phase (87.5%), p < 0.05. There was a significant improvement in the first hour hemodynamic parameters of shock patients: pre (71%), during (79%), and post (87%) intervention ( p < 0.007 pre vs. post). Shock reversal time reduced from 24 h pre-intervention to 6 h intervention and to 4.5 h post intervention ( p < 0.002). There was also a significant improvement in leadership performance assessed by modified Concise Assessment of Leader Management (CALM) instrument during the simulated ( p < 0.001) and real patient care in post intervention ( p < 0.05)., Conclusion: Telesimulation training is feasible and improved the process of care, time-critical interventions, leadership in both simulated and real patients and resolution of shock in real patients. To the best of our knowledge, this is one of the first studies where telesimulation has shown improvement in real patient outcomes., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 James, Vyasam, Venkatachalam, Sanseau, Cassidy, Ramachandra, Rebekah, Adhikari, Deutsch, Nishisaki and Nadkarni.)

Background: Skin problems are commonly encountered in the pediatric emergency department (PED). Although there are a few studies on the prevalence and spectrum of skin conditions in children attending the PED, only limited information is available on the outcome of the children with skin-related ailments requiring hospitalization., Aim: To study the clinical profile of skin manifestations in children presenting to the PED over a period of one year and assess the impact of skin lesions on the clinical outcome., Materials and Methods: All children <16 years of age attending the PED were screened and children with skin lesions were referred to the dermatologist for further evaluation, and those admitted were followed up until discharge. Children with skin lesions were categorized into seven subsets based on their diagnosis. Outcomes evaluated were duration of hospital stay, associated systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), and mortality., Results: Of the 24,324 patients screened, 203 (0.83%) had skin lesions, of whom 158 (77.83%) were discharged from the PED. Forty five (22.16%) patients required admission of whom 2 (0.99%) died. Inflammatory disorders were the most common, 102 (50.24%), followed by infections in 91 (44.82%) patients. Among the hospitalized patients, 25 (55.6%) had SIRS, which included infections in 14 (56%), vasculitis in 5 (20%), and urticaria in 3 (12%) patients. Two patients with SIRS died and the causes were purpura fulminans and febrile exanthem of probable viral etiology., Conclusion: Our study highlights the spectrum of pediatric cutaneous emergencies and their outcome. A subset of patients can present with severe skin ailments and SIRS in whom early diagnosis and prompt treatment can impact the outcome., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2019 Indian Dermatology Online Journal.)

Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.

Background: Rabies is a 100% fatal disease but preventable with vaccines and immunoglobulins. We have developed a new purified vero cell rabies vaccine (Rabivax-S) and evaluated its safety and immunogenicity in post-exposure prophylaxis by intramuscular (IM) and intradermal (ID) routes., Methods: This was a randomized active-controlled non-inferiority study in 180 individuals (age 5years and above) with suspected rabies exposure (90 each with WHO Category II and Category III exposures). The participants received either Rabivax-S (1mL IM; five doses), Rabivax-S (0.1mL ID; eight doses) or purified chick embryo cell vaccine (PCEC, Rabipur®) (1mL IM; five doses). The IM doses were given on Day 0, 3, 7, 14 and 28 while the ID doses were given on days 0, 3, 7 and 28. Category III patients also received a human rabies immunoglobulin (HRIG) on Day 0. Adverse events (AEs) were recorded with diary cards till day 42. Rabies neutralizing antibody levels were measured on day 0, 7, 14, 28 and 42., Results: In both the category II and III patients, the geometric mean concentration (GMC) ratios of Rabivax-S IM and Rabivax-S ID groups to PCEC IM were more than 1, thus proving the non-inferiority. GMCs were similar or higher in Rabivax-S groups at all the time points. Seroresponse against rabies (RFFIT titre⩾0.5IU/mL) was achieved in all participants. Mostly mild local and systemic adverse events were reported across the three groups and all resolved without sequelae., Conclusions: Rabivax-S was well tolerated and showed immunogenicity comparable to a licensed rabies vaccine by both IM and ID routes in post-exposure prophylaxis. Registry No.: CTRI/2012/11/003135., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: Data on the prehospital interventions received by critically ill children at arrival to Paediatric Emergency Services (PES) is limited in developing countries. This study aims to describe the pre-hospital care scenario, transport and their impact on outcome in non-traumatic, acutely ill children presenting in PES with agonal breathing., Methods: Prospective observational study done on children aged below 15 years arriving in PES with agonal breathing due to non-trauma related causes., Results: Out of 75 children studied, 69% were infants. The duration of illness among 65% of them (75) was less than 3 days. Majority of them (81%) had received treatment prior to arrival. Government sector physicians (72%), half of them (51%) being pediatricians were the major treating doctors. 37% of the children had arrived to the Emergency in an ambulance. Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) was given to 27% on arrival in PES. Other interventions included fluid boluses to correct shock (92%) and inotrope infusion (56%). Sepsis (24%) and pneumonia (24%) were the most common diagnoses. Out of 75, 57 (76%) children who were stabilized and shifted to PICU and among them 27 (47%) survived to discharge. Normal blood pressure ( p =0.0410) and non-requirement of CPR (0.0047) and inotropic infusion (0.0459) in PES were associated with a higher chance of survival., Conclusion: 36% (27/75) of children who arrived to our PES with agonal breathing survived to hospital discharge. Survival was significantly better among those who did not need CPR., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.