Case Report: Occlusion of the foramen of Monro treated with endoscopic septostomy and foraminotomy in a preterm neonate.

Background: Hydrocephalus is a brain abnormality frequently encountered in neonates. There are several known etiologies of hydrocephalus, which can be classified as either congenital or acquired. Occlusion of the foramen of Monro (FOM) is a cause of hydrocephalus and can be either congenital or secondary to various disorders. Idiopathic obstruction of the FOM presenting as prenatal ventriculomegaly is extremely rare but has been reported. Case presentation: We present the case of a preterm newborn with severe bilateral hydrocephalus due to FOM occlusion in the prenatal period. Although the neonate had normal head circumference and no clinical symptoms after birth, brain sonography revealed progressive ventriculomegaly. Further image revealed bilateral ventriculomegaly with normal-sized third and fourth ventricles. We suspected a complete obstruction of the right and a partial obstruction of the left of the FOM. The neonate underwent endoscopic septostomy and foraminotomy, resulting in improvement. Conclusion: We report a case of preterm FOM occlusion in the youngest and smallest neonate to date. Endoscopic septostomy and foraminotomy were performed in order to avoid ventriculoperitoneal shunt-related complications, highlighting the viability of endoscopic procedures which should be the primary treatment in preterm neonates with FOM occlusion.

Sleep problems in preschool children at the child development center with different developmental status: A questionnaire survey.

Objective: To investigate the relationship between sleep problems and development in preschool children with suspected developmental delay. Methods: A total of 192 preschool children (mean age 4 years; 131 males, 61 females) were recruited from the Child Development Clinic, including 98 preterm children and 94 age- and sex-matched full-term children. All participants underwent evaluation of gross motor, fine motor and speech performance. All parents of all participants completed the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ). Some of the participants also underwent psychological evaluation. Correlation analysis and community network analysis were used to investigate the interactions. Results: The developmental status was: 75.5% developmental delay, 19.3% borderline development, and 5.2% normal development. Eighty-nine percent of the subjects had abnormal CSHQ scores. Age, gestational age, speech development, cognitive development, and socio-emotional development were significantly correlated with the CSHQ. Significant interactions between sleep problems and development were noted mostly in the preterm group. Conclusion: High prevalence of sleep disturbances in children at the Child Development Center was noted and associated with multiple factors. Therefore, during the multidisciplinary evaluation of children with possible developmental delay, inquiring about their sleep quality and habits is strongly recommended. Mitigating sleep problems enhances the efficacy of early intervention programs.

Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Support in Neonates: A Single Medical Center Experience in Taiwan.

BACKGROUND: Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) was used in neonates with severe cardiopulmonary failure who failed to respond to conventional therapy. We started to apply neck venoarterial ECMO (VA-ECMO) in neonatal patients from 2000. In this study, we have focused on neonates who received ECMO support and described the current status of ECMO in neonates for both cardiac and pulmonary support and the risk factors associated with their outcomes. METHODS: Data were retrieved from our ECMO database for the neonates (age < 28 days) who received neck VA-ECMO support from January 2005 to June 2015. RESULTS: In total, 27 neonates, including 21 with respiratory support and six with cardiac support, were enrolled in this study. Sixteen (59.2%) patients survived to hospital discharge, and only one patient had a poor neurological outcome. The survival rate for respiratory support was 61.9% in which meconium aspiration syndrome with persistent pulmonary hypertension of a newborn had a superior outcome (11/13, 84.6%) and congenital diaphragmatic hernia had the worst outcome (4/7, 57.1%). The survival rate in the cardiac support group was only 50%. The median ECMO duration and hospital stay were 6 (1∼35.8) days and 37 (23∼232) days, respectively, for survivors. Furthermore, 11 (52.3%) neonates of 21 outborn patients were put on ECMO in other hospitals by our mobile ECMO team for respiratory support, and their survival (81.8%) was significantly better than those from in-house ECMO institution (40%). CONCLUSION: This is the first report for ECMO in neonatal disease in Taiwan. We achieved an overall survival rate of 59.2% with good neurological outcomes in this 10-year experience. ECMO could be a useful transportation tool for critical neonates who have a poor response to ventilator support.

Group B streptococcus antimicrobial resistance in neonates born to group B streptococcus-colonized mothers: Single-center survey.

AIM: In this study, we collected group B streptococcus (GBS) screening data and analyzed screening rate, antimicrobial resistance rate, and neonatal observation room (NOR) admission rate due to inadequate chemoprophylaxis. METHODS: The GBS screening data for January 2006-December 2013 were retrospectively collected and analyzed. We also collected data for neonates admitted to NOR due to inadequate chemoprophylaxis during the period 1 April 2010-31 December 2013. RESULTS: A total of 12 200 pregnant women received rectovaginal culture during the 8-year study period. The overall screening rate was 53.8% and maternal colonization rate was 20.7%. The GBS screening rate increased remarkably, from 23.2% in 2006 to 70% in 2013. Antimicrobial resistance was common. The resistance rates for each antimicrobial used in pregnancy were as follows: clindamycin, 49.51%; erythromycin, 49.51%. A total of 297 neonates were admitted to NOR due to inadequate antibiotic prophylaxis during 1 April 2010-31 December 2013. The overall NOR admission rate due to inadequate chemoprophylaxis was 2.67%, and the inadequate chemoprophylaxis rate for those GBS colonized mothers was 19.6%. None of these 297 infants had positive blood culture for GBS sepsis. CONCLUSION: The GBS screening rate increased remarkably, reaching 70% in 2013. The NOR admission rate due to inadequate chemoprophylaxis was 2.67% and there was no early onset GBS disease in a total of 11 123 deliveries in this 4-year cohort study.

Comparison of intracerebral hemorrhage and subarachnoid hemorrhage in patients with autosomal-dominant polycystic kidney disease.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) and intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) are two subtypes of hemorrhagic stroke that may cause severe complications in patients with autosomal-dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). The differences in clinical features between SAH and ICH associated with ADPKD are not known. METHODS: Among 647 ADPKD patients hospitalized between 1997 and 2007 in our hospital, 11 with ICH (1.7%) and 6 with SAH (0.9%) were identified. RESULTS: Patients with SAH were significantly younger than patients with ICH (39 +/- 6 vs. 57 +/- 15 years, p = 0.013). The systolic blood pressure on admission was significantly higher in patients with ICH (194 +/- 26 vs. 145 +/- 18 mm Hg, p = 0.001). Two patients (18.2%) with ICH died after a first episode, 6 had a second episode, and 2 had a third episode. Two patients (33.3%) with SAH died after a first episode but the survivors had no recurrence during follow-up. The 30-day survival curves comparing patients with ICH and SAH were not significantly different. Patients with a Glasgow Coma Score less than 9 on arrival had a significantly worse outcome. CONCLUSION: Clinical features differed between ICH and SAH associated with ADPKD. Nevertheless, blood pressure control and early recognition of hemorrhagic stroke are important in ADPKD patients.