Use of high-flow cannula in pediatric patients with respiratory failure: A prospective cohort study in three high-altitude hospitals.

Background and Aims: Acute respiratory failure (ARF) is a common cause of morbimortality, and a frequent reason for admission to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). It requires a high-flow oxygen device as treatment. Our aim is to determine the frequency and main indications for the use of high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC), and the prevalence of HFNC failure and its main causes, in three hospitals. Methods: It is a multicenter prospective cohort study, developed in three hospitals in Bogota. Eligible patients were children older than 1 month and younger than 18 years who presented ARF and required management with an HFNC. The study was carried out between April 2020 and December 2021. The follow-up was carried out at 1, 6, and 48 h after starting the management. Results: Of 685 patients included in the study, 296 developed ARF. The prevalence of patients with ARF who required management with HFNC was 48%. The frequency of the pathologies that cause the ARF was: Bronchiolitis was the most frequent pathology (34.5%), followed by asthmatic crisis (15.5%) and pneumonia (12.7%). The average time of use of HFNC was 81.6 h. Regarding treatment failure with HFNC, 15 patients presented torpid evolution and required invasive mechanical ventilation, with a prevalence of therapeutic failure of the HFNC of 10.6%. Conclusion: The use of HFNC is more frequent in patients with bronchiolitis, in children under 2 years of age and in males, which is in line with what has been reported in the literature. In addition, the failure rate of HFNC is low (10.6%), and it may be useful in other pathologies besides bronchiolitis, such as asthma, pneumonia, among others. It opens the possibility to continue evaluating the role of HFNC in pediatric pathology in new studies.

COVID-19 in children and the influence on the employment activity of their female caregivers: A cross sectional gender perspective study.

Introduction: During the COVID-19 pandemic, women disproportionately assume more unpaid activities, affecting their employment. Objective: Describe the influence of COVID-19 on the employment of caregivers of children and adolescents from a gender perspective. Methods: Cross-sectional study in three high-complexity hospitals in Bogotá, Colombia from April 2020 to June 2021. A subsample of the FARA cohort was taken, including those patients with a positive test for SARS-COV2. We took as our analysis category children older than 8 years and younger than 18 years who had a positive SARS-COV2 test, as well as, caregivers of all children with a positive SARS-COV2 test. This subsample was drawn from the FARA cohort. A survey was applied to them. We carried out a descriptive and stratified analysis by age group, educational, and socioeconomic level. Results: We included 60 surveys of caregivers and 10 surveys of children. The main caregiver in 94.8% of the cases was a female. At the beginning of the pandemic, 63.3% of the caregivers were employed, and 78.9% of those lost their employment. The vast majority of these caregiver were women (96.6%, n = 29). A predominance of loss of work activity was documented in caregivers of children in early childhood 66.6% (n = 20), with lower education 66.6% (n = 20), and from lower strata 56.6% (n = 17). Conclusion: Caregivers of children with COVID-19 with low educational levels and lower socioeconomic conditions, as well as those with children under 5 years showed greater likelihood of employment loss between the interviewed subsample.

Predictors of severity in severe respiratory infection in children with COVID-19 respiratory infection in a developing country.

On March 11, 2020, the WHO declared the COVID-19 pandemic. This name was given to the disease caused by the SARS-CoV 2 virus at its outbreak in December 2019 in Wuhan, Hubei, China. In Colombia, a significant number of cases have been confirmed. The aim of this study was to evaluate children with respiratory symptoms caused by SARS-CoV2 infection, identifying independent predictors of risk of having a severe illness, thus leading to an early approach and intervention in our patients, especially in children with comorbidities. An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted between April 1, 2020 and March 31, 2021 at a fourth-level referral institution in Bogotá on patients under 18 years of age with respiratory symptoms and a COVID-19 diagnosis confirmed in the laboratory. An explanatory binary logistic regression model was performed with an outcome variable of admission to the intensive care unit. A total of 385 children were included in the study, with ages between 9 months and 17 years of age; 50.1% were male, and the ICR was 9.75 years. 41.6% had some comorbidity, 13.5% were admitted to the pediatric ICU, and 3.6% of the total number of patients died. The predictor variables were: use of antibiotics in the first 24 h, neurological comorbidity, and consolidation shown in the chest X-ray. This explains 38.7% of the variability of the variable. In this cohort of patients with COVID-19-associated respiratory symptoms, we identified predictors of severity, so we consider that these patients require a risk approach that allows timely and adequate care.

Incidence, etiology, sociodemographic and clinical characterization of acute respiratory failure in pediatric patients at a high-altitude city: A multicenter cohort study.

Background: Acute respiratory failure is a life-threatening medical condition, associated with a variety of conditions and risk factors, including acute respiratory diseases which are a frequent cause of pediatric morbidity and mortality worldwide. In Colombia, the literature related to ARF is scarce. Objective: To determine the incidence, causes, and sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of ARF in three hospitals in Bogota, a high-altitude city located in Colombia, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A multicenter prospective cohort study called the FARA cohort was developed between April 2020 - December 2021. Patients older than one month and younger than 18 years with respiratory distress who developed ARF were included. Results: 685 patients with respiratory distress were recruited in 21 months. The incidence density of ARF was found to be 41.7 cases per 100 person-year CI 95%, (37.3-47.7). The median age was 4.5 years.. Most of the patients consulted during the first 72 h after the onset of symptoms. Upon admission, 67.2% were potentially unstable. The most frequent pathologies were asthma, bronchiolitis, pneumonia, and sepsis. At admission, 75.6% of the patients required different oxygen delivery systems, 29,5% a low-flow oxygen system, 36,8% a high-flow oxygen system, and 9,28% invasive mechanical ventilation. SARS-COV-2, respiratory syncytial virus, rhinovirus/enterovirus, and adenovirus were the most frequently isolated viral agents. The coinfection cases were scarce. Conclusions: This multicenter study, the FARA cohort, developed at 2,600 meters above sea level, shows the first data on incidence, etiology, sociodemographic and clinical characterization in a pediatric population with ARF that also concurs with the COVID-19 pandemic. These results, not only have implications for public health but also contribute to the scientific and epidemiological literature on a disease developed at a high altitude.

Prevalence of sleep apnea in children and adolescents in Colombia according to the national health registry 2017-2021.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the sociodemographic and epidemiological characteristics of diagnosis and treatment of pediatric patients with sleep apnea, both central and obstructive, in Colombia between 2017 and 2021. METHODS: Observational, descriptive, cross-sectional, epidemiological study using the International Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems as search terms for sleep apnea, based on SISPRO, the Colombian national health registry. Stratification by gender and age groups was performed. We also generated data of the amount of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures performed. A map of prevalence by place of residency was performed. RESULTS: National records report 15200 cases of SA between 2017 and 2021, for an estimated prevalence of 21.1 cases by 100000 inhabitants in 2019 the year with the most cases (4769), being more frequent and in the 6 to 11 age group and in males, with a male to female ratio of 1.54:1. The number of cases declined in 2020 and 2021. The map showed a concentration of cases in the more developed departments of the country. DISCUSSION: This is the first approximation to a nation-wide prevalence of sleep apnea in Colombia which is lower to what is found in the literature worldwide, including studies performed in Latin America and in Colombia, this could reflect sub diagnosis and sub report. The fact that the highest prevalence was found in males and in the 6-11 age group is consistent with reports in literature. The decrease in cases in 2020 and 2021 could be related to the COVID-19 pandemic impact in sleep medicine services.

Recommendations from the Asociación Colombiana de Medicina del Sueño for the practice of sleep medicine in Colombia during the COVID-19 pandemic / Recomendaciones de la Asociación Colombiana de Medicina del Sueño para el ejercicio de la medicina del sueño en Colombia durante la pandemia por COVID-19

Abstract Measures such as frequent handwashing, mandatory use of face masks by the general population in public spaces, social and physical distancing, and mandatory confinement of most people at their homes have contributed to slowing down the spread of the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), which is the source of the current COVID-19 pandemic. However, adopting some of these measures has caused delays in the diagnosis and treatment of various diseases, including sleep disorders. Therefore, it is urgent for sleep specialists and sleep centers to gradually resume activities, as long as strict biosecurity protocols aimed at reducing the risk of contagion are implemented. In this scenario, and in order to help somnologists reopen sleep centers and resume the procedures performed there, the Asociación Colombiana de Medicina del Sueño (Colombian Association of Sleep Medicine) proposes through this reflection paper several recommendations that should be considered during the reactivation process. These recommendations are based on the COVID-19 spread mitigation strategies established by the Colombian health authorities, the guidelines issued by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, and relevant literature on this subject, which was reviewed after performing a search in the PubMed, SciELO, and Google Scholar databases using the search terms "sleep" "sleep medicine" and "COVID19".

Resumen El lavado de manos frecuente, el uso obligatorio de mascarilla por parte de la población general en sitios públicos, el distanciamiento físico y social, y el confinamiento obligatorio de la mayoría de la población en sus casas son las medidas que hasta el momento han ayudado a frenar la propagación del nuevo coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), causante de la actual pandemia por COVID-19. Sin embargo, la adopción de algunas de estas medidas ha generado retraso en el diagnóstico y tratamiento de diferentes enfermedades, incluyendo los trastornos del sueño, por lo que es urgente que los especialistas en medicina del sueño y los centros de sueño retomen sus actividades gradualmente, siempre que se implementen estrictos protocolos de bioseguridad que mitiguen el riesgo de contagio. En este contexto, y con el fin de ayudar a los somnólogos a reabrir los centros de sueño y reanudar los procedimientos allí realizados, la Asociación Colombiana de Medicina del Sueño propone en la presente reflexión una serie de recomendaciones para tener en cuenta durante el proceso de reactivación. Estas recomendaciones se basan en las estrategias de mitigación establecidas por las autoridades sanitarias del país, las directrices de la American Academy of Sleep Medicine y la literatura disponible sobre el tema, la cual fue revisada luego de realizar una búsqueda en las bases de datos PubMed, SciELO y Google Scholar usando los términos "sleep" "sleep medicine" y "COVID19".