IMPORTANCE Accurately estimating the probability of urinary tract infection (UTI) in febrile preverbal children is necessary to appropriately target testing and treatment.OBJECTIVE To develop and test a calculator (UTICalc) that can first estimate the probability of UTI based on clinical variables and then update that probability based on laboratory results. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Review of electronic medical records of febrile children aged 2 to 23 months who were brought to the emergency department of Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. An independent training database comprising 1686 patients brought to the emergency department between January 1, 2007, and April 30, 2013, and a validation database of 384 patients were created. Five multivariable logistic regression models for predicting risk of UTI were trained and tested. The clinical model included only clinical variables; the remaining models incorporated laboratory results. Data analysis was EXPOSURES Documented temperature of 38°C or higher in children aged 2 months to less than 2 years. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES With the use of culture-confirmed UTI as the main outcome, cutoffs for high and low UTI risk were identified for each model. The resultant models were incorporated into a calculation tool, UTICalc, which was used to evaluate medical records. RESULTS A total of 2070 children were included in the study. The training database comprised 1686 children, of whom 1216 (72.1%) were female and 1167 (69.2%) white. The validation database comprised 384 children, of whom 291 (75.8%) were female and 200 (52.1%) white. Compared with the American Academy of Pediatrics algorithm, the clinical model in UTICalc reduced testing by 8.1% (95% CI, 4.2%-12.0%) and decreased the number of UTIs that were missed from 3 cases to none. Compared with empirically treating all children with a leukocyte esterase test result of 1+ or higher, the dipstick model in UTICalc would have reduced the number of treatment delays by 10.6% (95% CI, 0.9%-20.4%).CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE UTICalc estimates the probability of UTI by evaluating the risk factors present in the individual child. As a result, testing and treatment can be tailored, thereby improving outcomes for children with UTI.

Background-To evaluate the efficacy of adjuvant systemic corticosteroids in reducing kidney scarring. A previous study suggested that use of adjuvant systemic corticosteroids reduces kidney Terms of use and reuse: academic research for non-commercial purposes, see here for full terms. http://www.springer.com/gb/openaccess/authors-rights/aam-terms-v1

Amoxicillin-clavulanate (A/C) is currently the most effective oral antimicrobial in treating children with acute otitis media (AOM), but the standard dosage of 90 mg amoxicillin/6.4 mg clavulanate/kg of body weight/day commonly causes diarrhea. We examined whether an A/C formulation containing lower concentrations of clavulanate would result in less diarrhea while maintaining plasma levels of amoxicillin and clavulanate adequate to eradicate middle-ear pathogens and to achieve clinical success. We conducted an open-label study in children with AOM who were 6 to 23 months of age. In phase 1, we treated 40 children with a reduced-clavulanate A/C formulation providing 90 mg amoxicillin/3.2 mg clavulanate/kg/day for 10 days. In phase 2, we treated 72 children with the same formulation at a dosage of 80 mg amoxicillin/2.85 mg clavulanate/kg/day for 10 days. We compared the rates of protocoldefined diarrhea (PDD), diaper dermatitis, and AOM clinical response in these children with rates we had reported in children who received the standard A/C regimen, and we obtained plasma levels of amoxicillin and clavulanate at various time points. Outcomes in phase 1 children and in children who had received the standard regimen did not differ significantly. Rates of PDD in children receiving phase 2 and standard regimens were 17% and 26%, respectively (P ϭ 0.10). The corresponding rates of diaper dermatitis were 21% and 33% (P ϭ 0.04) and of AOM treatment failure were 12% and 16% (P ϭ 0.44). Symptomatic responses did not differ significantly between regimens; both gave clavulanate levels sufficient to inhibit ␤-lactamase activity. In young children with AOM, clavulanate dosages lower than those currently used may be associated with fewer side effects without reducing clinical efficacy. (This study has been registered at ClinicalTrials.gov under registration no. NCT02630992.) KEYWORDS acute otitis media, amoxicillin-clavulanate, antimicrobial treatment N ext to the common cold, acute otitis media (AOM) is the most frequently diagnosed illness in children in the United States (1) and the most commonly cited indication for antimicrobial treatment (2). Findings of two recent placebo-controlled trials support routine antimicrobial treatment of AOM in very young children. In those trials, affected children under 3 years of age who received antimicrobial treatment for 7 or 10 days experienced more-favorable outcomes than those who received placebo (3, 4). In both studies, amoxicillin-clavulanate was used as the active treatment-albeit in different dosing regimens-because it had been previously shown to have the highest rates of eradication of AOM pathogens, with high resultant rates of clinical cure. The efficacy of A/C is attributable in part to inactivation, by the clavulanate

Chylothorax is defined as the accumulation of chyle within the pleural space. Originally described in 1917 by Pisek, it is the most common cause of pleural effusion in the neonatal period. The leading cause of chylothorax is laceration of the thoracic duct during surgery, which occurs in 0.85% to 6.6% of children undergoing cardiothoracic surgery. Few authors of reports in the literature have looked at etilefrine, a relatively unknown sympathomimetic, as an option for the medical treatment of chylothorax. In this case report, we review the clinical course of 2 infants with type III esophageal atresia who developed chylothorax after thoracic surgery and were successfully treated with intravenous etilefrine after failing initial dietary and pharmacological management.

Background The AAP recommends 7 to 14-days of antimicrobials for the treatment of urinary tract infections (UTIs), one of the most common bacterial infections of childhood. However, most physicians routinely prescribe at least 10 days of therapy. Prior observational studies suggest that courses shorter than 10 days might be effective. Methods The primary objective was to determine if halting antimicrobial therapy in children who improved clinically after 5 days of therapy (short course therapy) results in a similar failure rate as children who continue antimicrobials for an additional 5 days (standard course therapy). This was a multi-center, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled non-inferiority clinical trial of children ages 2 to 10 years with UTI. Subjects treated with 1 of 5 antibiotics (trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, amoxicillin-clavulanate, cefixime, cefdinir or cephalexin) were eligible. Children were stratified by presence or absence of fever and were enrolled if they had clinical improvement before Day 5 of treatment. The a priori equivalence interval was set at 0.05 for a one-sided analysis. The primary outcome was development of a symptomatic UTI defined as the presence of symptoms, pyuria, and a positive urine culture. The Intent-to-Treat population included children who took at least one dose of study medication. Results A total of 693 children were randomized, 345 to short course and 348 to standard course. Median age was 4 years old (IQR; 2-6), 652 (96.3%) were female and 255 were febrile (37%). Treatment success rate was 322/336 (96%) for short course and 326/328 (99%) for standard course. The 95% upper CI limit for the difference was 0.054. Treatment failure was not related to age group, fever at presentation, antibiotic type, or study site. There were no significant differences between groups the in the rates of adverse events, recurrent infection, clinical symptoms that may have been related to UTI, or emergent antibiotic resistance. Conclusion In children aged 2 months to 10 years with UTI, halting antimicrobial therapy in children who had exhibited clinical improvement after 5 days and continuing for an additional 5 days both resulted in high success rates. However, short course was inferior to treatment for 10 days. Disclosures Kevin J. Downes, MD, Merck, Inc. (Grant/Research Support) Brian T. Fisher, DO, MPH, MSCE, Astellas (Advisor or Review Panel member)Merck (Grant/Research Support)Pfizer (Grant/Research Support)

ImportanceThere is a paucity of pediatric-specific comparative data to guide duration of therapy recommendations in children with urinary tract infection (UTI).ObjectiveTo compare the efficacy of standard-course and short-course therapy for children with UTI.Design, Setting, ParticipantsThe Short Course Therapy for Urinary Tract Infections (SCOUT) randomized clinical noninferiority trial took place at outpatient clinics and emergency departments at 2 children’s hospitals from May 2012, through, August 2019. Data were analyzed from January 2020, through, February 2023. Participants included children aged 2 months to 10 years with UTI exhibiting clinical improvement after 5 days of antimicrobials.InterventionAnother 5 days of antimicrobials (standard-course therapy) or 5 days of placebo (short-course therapy).Main Outcome MeasuresThe primary outcome, treatment failure, was defined as symptomatic UTI at or before the first follow-up visit (day 11 to 14). Secondary outcomes included UTI after the first follow-up visit, asymptomatic bacteriuria, positive urine culture, and gastrointestinal colonization with resistant organisms.ResultsAnalysis for the primary outcome included 664 randomized children (639 female [96%]; median age, 4 years). Among children evaluable for the primary outcome, 2 of 328 assigned to standard-course (0.6%) and 14 of 336 assigned to short-course (4.2%) had a treatment failure (absolute difference of 3.6% with upper bound 95% CI of 5.5.%). Children receiving short-course therapy were more likely to have asymptomatic bacteriuria or a positive urine culture at or by the first follow-up visit. There were no differences between groups in rates of UTI after the first follow-up visit, incidence of adverse events, or incidence of gastrointestinal colonization with resistant organisms.Conclusions and RelevanceIn this randomized clinical trial, children assigned to standard-course therapy had lower rates of treatment failure than children assigned to short-course therapy. However, the low failure rate of short-course therapy suggests that it could be considered as a reasonable option for children exhibiting clinical improvement after 5 days of antimicrobial treatment.Trial RegistrationClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01595529

Paired nasopharynx and midturbinate swabs were obtained from 96 children (mean age: 2.45 years) with upper respiratory tract symptoms. Of these, 38.5% were colonized with Streptococcus pneumoniae only, 16.7% with Haemophilus influenzae only and 9.4% with both bacteria. Bacterial cultures from paired nasopharynx and midturbinate swabs demonstrated agreement for S. pneumoniae (κ = 0.75), H. influenzae (κ = 0.59) and for both pathogens (κ = 0.62). This report compares the results of bacterial cultures obtained from the nasopharynx and midturbinate specimens in children with upper respiratory tract infections.

BACKGROUND Acute otitis media (AOM) is the most frequent reason for children to be prescribed antimicrobial treatment. Surfactants are naturally occurring substances that may restore the eustachian tube’s function and potentially enhance resolution of AOM. METHODS This was a phase 2a, single-center, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, parallel group clinical trial to assess safety, tolerability, and efficacy of 20 mg per day intranasal OP0201 as an adjunct therapy to oral antimicrobial agents for treating AOM in young children. We randomly assigned 103 children aged 6 to 24 months with AOM to receive either OP0201 or placebo twice daily for 10 days. All children received amoxicillin-clavulanate 90/6.4 mg/kg per day in 2 divided doses for 10 days. Participants were managed for up to 1 month. Postrandomization visits occurred between days 4 and 6 (visit 2), days 12 and 14 (visit 3), and days 26 and 30 (visit 4). Primary efficacy endpoints were resolution of a bulging tympanic membrane at visit 2 and resolution of middle-ear effusion at visit 3. RESULTS No clinically meaningful differences between treatment groups were apparent for primary or secondary endpoints. There were no safety concerns identified. CONCLUSIONS In young children with AOM, intranasally administered surfactant (OP0201) did not improve clinical outcomes. Further research may be warranted among children with persistent middle-ear effusion.