Purpose: With in vitro fertilization (IVF) becoming a common treatment for infertility, there has been an increasing number of studies on perinatal complications related to IVF. This study compares the clinical characteristics of twins at gestational age less than 34 weeks, between IVF and spontaneous conceived. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 138 preterm twins at gestational age less than 34 weeks, admitted between January 2009 and December 2011 to the neonatal intensive care units of two hospitals. Maternal and preterm infant's clinical characteristics of 58 IVF and 80 spontaneous conceived twins were compared.Results: Maternal age was older in IVF twins (33.3±2.8 vs. 31.3±4.2, P-value=0.007), and there was no other significant difference between the two maternal groups.Gestational age was lesser in IVF twins (30.6±3.2 vs. 31.2±2.7, P-value=0.048). Age at the day of full enteral feeding (24.2±12.1 vs. 18.2±13.2, P-value<0.001) and age at day of full oral feeding (30.1±18.5 vs. 25.3±19.2, P-value<0.001) were significantly longer in IVF twins as adjusted by gestational age. Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) showed higher incidence in IVF twins (P-value=0.011), but there was no significant difference between the two groups after adjusting gestational age.
Conclusion:The clinical characteristics in IVF twins at gestational age less than 34 weeks were not significantly different from those of spontaneously conceived twins except age at the day of full enteral feeding and age at the day of full oral feeding after adjusting by gestational age.
Background:Respiratory viruses play a significant role in the etiology of acute respiratory infections and exacerbation of chronic respiratory illnesses. This study was conducted to identify the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of children with acute viral lower respiratory infections. Methods: This study investigated 1,168 children diagnosed with acute viral lower respiratory tract infections (RTIs) between January 2012 and December 2014. Specimens of respiratory viruses were collected using a nasopharyngeal swab and analyzed by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records and analyzed the clinical features of children hospitalized for acute lower respiratory infections. Results: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), the main cause of infection in children aged <5 years, was the most commonly detected pathogen in children with bronchiolitis and pneumonia, and resulted in high proportions of children requiring oxygen treatment and intensive care unit admission. Rhinovirus was preceded by RSV as the second most common cause of bronchiolitis and pneumonia, and was detected most frequently in the children aged ≥6 years. In addition, asthma was predominantly caused by rhinovirus in children aged ≥6 years, whereas croup was mostly caused by parainfluenza virus in those aged <5 years. Rhinovirus infection (p<0.001) and history of asthma (p=0.049) were identified as significant risk factors for readmission within a month. Conclusion: We identified the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of respiratory viruses in children with acute lower respiratory infections during the last 3 years. Our findings may provide useful clinical insight to comprehend the acute viral lower RTIs in children.
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