A Clinical Score for Quantifying Edema in Mechanically Ventilated Children With Congenital Heart Disease in Intensive Care.

Standardized clinical measurements of edema do not exist. OBJECTIVES: To describe a 19-point clinical edema score (CES), investigate its interobserver agreement, and compare changes between such CES and body weight. DESIGN SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Prospective observational study in a tertiary PICU of mechanically ventilated children with congenital heart disease. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Differences in the median CES between observer groups. RESULTS: We studied 61 children, with a median age of 8.0 days (interquartile range, 1.0-14.0 d). A total of 539 CES were performed by three observer groups (medical 1 [reference], medical 2, and bedside nurse) at 0, 24, and 48 hours from enrollment. Overall, there was close agreement between observer groups in mean, median, and upper quartile of CES scores, with least agreement observed in the lower quartile of scores. Across all quartiles of CES, after adjusting for baseline weight, cardiac surgical risk, duration of cardiopulmonary bypass, or peritoneal dialysis during the study, observer groups returned similar mean scores (medical 2: 25th centile +0.1 [95% CI, -0.2 to 0.5], median +0.6 [95% CI, -0.4 to 1.5], 75th centile +0.1 [95% CI, -1.1 to 1.4] and nurse: 25th centile +0.5 [95% CI, 0.0-0.9], median +0.7 [95% CI, 0.0-1.5], 75th centile -0.2 [95% CI, -1.3 to 1.0]) Within a multivariable mixed-effects linear regression model, including adjustment for baseline CES, each 1 point increase in CES was associated with a 12.1 grams (95% CI, 3.2-21 grams) increase in body weight. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: In mechanically ventilated children with congenital heart disease, three groups of observers tended to agree when assessing overall edema using an ordinal clinical score assessed in six body regions, with agreement least at low edema scores. An increase in CES was associated with an increase in body weight, suggesting some validity for quantifying edema. Further exploration of the CES as a rapid clinical tool is indicated.

Active surveillance for carbapenem resistant enterobacteriaceae (CRE) using stool cultures as a method to decrease CRE infections in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU).

BACKGROUND: The incidence of Carbapenem Resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) infections is increasing worldwide. Due to dearth of alternative antibiotics, prevention of infection transmission is a part of CRE infection management strategy. Early detection of CRE by active surveillance coupled with contact isolation is much more appropriate compared to contact isolation upon receipt of routine cultures dictated by the patient's clinical condition. OBJECTIVES: To determine whether active CRE surveillance will decrease CRE infection rates in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). METHODS: Retrospective observational study done in the 10-bed PICU of a tertiary care teaching children's hospital from July 2013 to June 2015. Rectal swabs for CRE were sent from all PICU patients except stable post-operative patients. Contact isolation precautions were followed for rectal swab positive patients. CRE colonization and infection rates were calculated and compared. RESULTS: Total of 1262 rectal swabs were sent from 1022 patients. CRE colonization rate was 19.5%. Post intervention, ICU acquired CRE colonization decreased by 36% and ICU acquired CRE infection rates decreased by 100%, both showed significant decrease (p â€‹< â€‹0.0001). CONCLUSION: Active CRE surveillance and institution of contact isolation in appropriate situations is helpful in decreasing CRE colonization and infection rates in the PICU.

Agreement Between Measured Weight and Fluid Balance in Mechanically Ventilated Children in Intensive Care.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the agreement between change in body weight (BW) and fluid balance (FB), and the precision and safety of BW measurement in mechanically ventilated infants in intensive care. DESIGN: Prospective observational study. SETTING: Tertiary PICU. PATIENTS: Infants following cardiac surgery, at baseline, 24 hours, and 48 hours. INTERVENTIONS: BW and FB measurement at three time points. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Between May 2021 and September 2022, we studied 61 children. The median age was 8 days (interquartile range [IQR], 1.0-14.0 d). The median BW at baseline was 3,518 g (IQR, 3,134-3,928 g). Change in BW was -36 g (IQR, -145 to 105 g) and -97 g (IQR, -240 to -28 g) between baseline and 24 hours, and between 24 and 48 hours, respectively. Change in FB was -82 mL (IQR, -173 to 12 mL) and -107 mL (IQR, -226 to 103) between baseline and 24 hours, and between 24 and 48 hours, respectively. In Bland-Altman analyses, the mean bias between BW and FB at 24 and 48 hours was 54 g (95% CI, 12-97) and -43 g (95% CI, -108 to 23), respectively. This exceeded 1% of the median BW, and limits of agreement ranged from 7.6% to 15% of baseline BW. The precision of paired weight measurements, performed sequentially at each time interval, was high (median difference of ≤1% of BW at each time point). The median weight of connected devices ranged from 2.7% to 3% of BW. There were no episodes of tube or device dislodgments and no change in vasoactive therapies during weight measurements. CONCLUSIONS: There is moderate agreement between the changes in FB and BW, albeit greater than 1% of baseline BW, and the limits of this agreement are wide. Weighing mechanically ventilated infants in intensive care is a relatively safe and precise method for estimating change in fluid status. Device weight represents a relatively large proportion of BW.

Pediatric acute liver failure: An experience of a pediatric intensive care unit from resource limited settings.

Introduction: Pediatric acute liver failure is a rare and serious disease. Though liver transplantation is considered as the established treatment option for patients who are unlikely to recover with medical management, however, with the advancement of medical care there has been an increase in spontaneous regeneration of liver, obviating the need for liver transplantation. We identified the etiologies, outcome and prognostic factors of acute liver failure and the validity of the existing liver transplantation criteria to predict the outcome of pediatric acute liver failure. Materials and methods: This was a retrospective study done from January 2014 to December 2019 in a tertiary pediatric critical care unit in South India. All children aged between 1 month to 18 years admitted with acute liver failure were enrolled. Results: Of 125 children with acute liver failure, the main etiologies were infections (32%), indeterminate (23%), paracetamol toxicity (21%), metabolic (13%) and others (11%). Dengue was the most common infection (55%). The median pediatric logistic organ dysfunction score at admission was 12 (4-27). Of 125 patients, 63.2% (n = 79) had spontaneous regeneration which was higher in paracetamol induced (92.3%) compared to non-paracetamol induced acute liver failure (55.5%). Only two patients underwent liver transplantation and 35% died. Peak alanine transaminase and use of inotropes significantly predicted the outcome of disease. Of 38 children meeting King's College Hospital criteria for liver transplantation, 57.9% had spontaneous regeneration and 36.8% died. Of 74 children meeting INR > 4 criteria, 54% (n = 40) had spontaneous regeneration and 43.2% died. INR >4 criteria was more sensitive than King's College Hospital criteria for predicting the need for liver transplantation. Conclusion: Pediatric acute liver failure is caused by varied etiologies and infections were the commonest cause. Despite having a seriously ill cohort of patients, medical management resulted in spontaneous regeneration in the majority of children with acute liver failure. The use of inotropes, advanced hepatic encephalopathy, and peak alanine transaminase were predictors of poor outcome in children with acute liver failure and these patients could be considered for liver transplantation as available. Therefore, we may need to develop better predictors of pediatric acute liver failure in resource limited settings.