Background To date, few data on paediatric COVID-19 have been published, and most reports originate from China. This study aimed to capture key data on children and adolescents with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection across Europe to inform physicians and health-care service planning during the ongoing pandemic. Methods This multicentre cohort study involved 82 participating health-care institutions across 25 European countries, using a well established research network-the Paediatric Tuberculosis Network European Trials Group (ptbnet)-that mainly comprises paediatric infectious diseases specialists and paediatric pulmonologists. We included all individuals aged 18 years or younger with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection, detected at any anatomical site by RT-PCR, between April 1 and April 24, 2020, during the initial peak of the European COVID-19 pandemic. We explored factors associated with need for intensive care unit (ICU) admission and initiation of drug treatment for COVID-19 using univariable analysis, and applied multivariable logistic regression with backwards stepwise analysis to further explore those factors significantly associated with ICU admission. Findings 582 individuals with PCR-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection were included, with a median age of 5•0 years (IQR 0•5-12•0) and a sex ratio of 1•15 males per female. 145 (25%) had pre-existing medical conditions. 363 (62%) individuals were admitted to hospital. 48 (8%) individuals required ICU admission, 25 (4%) mechanical ventilation (median duration 7 days, IQR 2-11, range 1-34), 19 (3%) inotropic support, and one (<1%) extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Significant risk factors for requiring ICU admission in multivariable analyses were being younger than 1 month (odds ratio 5•06, 95% CI 1•72-14•87; p=0•0035), male sex (2•12, 1•06-4•21; p=0•033), pre-existing medical conditions (3•27, 1•67-6•42; p=0•0015), and presence of lower respiratory tract infection signs or symptoms at presentation (10•46, 5•16-21•23; p<0•0001). The most frequently used drug with antiviral activity was hydroxychloroquine (40 [7%] patients), followed by remdesivir (17 [3%] patients), lopinavir-ritonavir (six [1%] patients), and oseltamivir (three [1%] patients). Immunomodulatory medication used included corticosteroids (22 [4%] patients), intravenous immunoglobulin (seven [1%] patients), tocilizumab (four [1%] patients), anakinra (three [1%] patients), and siltuximab (one [<1%] patient). Four children died (case-fatality rate 0•69%, 95% CI 0•20-1•82); at study end, the remaining 578 were alive and only 25 (4%) were still symptomatic or requiring respiratory support. Interpretation COVID-19 is generally a mild disease in children, including infants. However, a small proportion develop severe disease requiring ICU admission and prolonged ventilation, although fatal outcome is overall rare. The data also reflect the current uncertainties regarding specific treatment options, highlighting that additional data on antiviral and immunomodulatory drugs...

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SUMMARY – The prevalence of chronic hepatitis C increases in elderly patients. The aims of this study were to identify the factors associated with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and end-stage liver disease development and to evaluate the efficacy and safety of pegylated interferon (PEG-IFNα) plus ribavirin (RBV) therapy in elderly patients. A retrospective cohort study included all consecutive patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection treated with PEG-IFNα+RBV between 2003 and 2013. Elderly patients had a higher frequency of poor prognostic factors including genotype 1 infection, high fibrosis, and high fibrosis index based on four factors (FIB-4) score. The sustained virologic response (SVR) rate for genotype 1 was significantly lower (35.8% vs . 57.1%), while the frequency of PEG-IFNα (27.2% vs . 7.8%), RBV dose reduction (19.6% vs . 9.7%) and treatment discontinuation (13.0% vs . 4.1%) was significantly higher in elderly patients. However, age was not associated with SVR in multivariate analysis, and comparable SVR rates were achieved when adjusted for fibrosis score (Ishak ≤3: 66.7% vs . 69.8%). During the follow-up, HCC was diagnosed in 18 elderly patients (3 SVR+, 4 SVR- and 9 untreated patients). In conclusion, selected elderly patients can achieve comparable SVR rates as younger patients, but with a higher rate of side effects. Since complications of HCV infection occur more frequently in elderly patients, they should be given priority for antiviral therapy.

A total of 9 cases of IE in subjects <18 years of age were treated in University Hospital for Infectious Diseases in Zagreb in the past 13 years (2005-2017). There were 5 boys and 4 girls, aged 7 months to 17 years (median 7 years). 55% of cases were caused by common pathogenic bacteria (2 Coagulase-negative Staphylococcus, 2 Staphylococcus aureus, 1 Streptococcus sanguinis), while almost half of them (45%) were caused by relatively uncommon organisms in pediatric population: Enterococcus faecalis, Granulicatella adiacens, Haemophilus parainfluenzae and Abiotrophia defectiva (1 patient each). Although one (11%) patient didn´t have risk factor for IE, all of the others had CHD and one of them had central venous catheter as well.

Cefpodoxime proxetil as a therapeutic option in switching therapy for infective endocarditis in children: case reports and literature review. Journal of Chemotherapy, 31 (6). pp. 354-358.