Evaluation of Cerebrovascular Events Followed in Pediatric Intensive Care Unit.

AIM: To evaluate the effect of intensive care follow-up and treatment methods on the prognosis of 28 patients admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) due to stroke. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The data of patients aged between 28 days and 18 years followed up between 2011 and 2021 were recorded retrospectively. RESULTS: Thirteen (48.1%) patients were diagnosed with hemorrhagic stroke (HS), 11 (40.7%) patients were diagnosed with acute ischemic stroke (AIS), and three (11.1%) patients were diagnosed with cerebral sinus vein thrombosis. One patient was followed up for non-ruptured arteriovenous malformation (AVM) and was excluded from the HS group. The HS group consisted of eight patients with ruptured AVMs and five patients with ruptured intracranial aneurysms. The patients had male predominance, and seizures and headache were the most common complaints on admission. The rate of admissions due to seizures was higher in the AIS group. In the HS group, there was more involvement of the right side of the brain. Middle cerebral artery (MCA) involvement was higher in the AIS group. The AIS group had longer PICU hospitalization days and mechanical ventilator days. While unfractionated heparin was preferred for the treatment in the AIS group, endovascular embolization was preferred in the HS group. Decompressive surgery was performed in five patients. The overall mortality rate was 7.1%. CONCLUSION: Although cerebrovascular events are rare in the pediatric population, achieving low mortality and morbidity is possible with the correct diagnostic and treatment methods.

COVID-19-associated transverse myelitis treated by therapeutic plasma exchange: A case report.

BACKGROUND: Transverse myelitis (TM) is a very uncommon condition in children which can be associated with viral infections. Acute TM cases have been reported after Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection during the pandemic. CASE REPORT: We report a child with TM related to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, who was successfully treated with therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE). Inability to walk and urinary retention were the central nervous system symptom. Spinal magnetic resonance imaging revealed signal changes in the spinal cord. Her neurological symptoms worsened despite receiving IVIG and high-dose steroids for the first 3 d. We performed 10 TPE sessions with 5% albumin replacement and the neurological symptoms rapidly improved. CONCLUSION: We demonstrated that a child diagnosed with acute TM related to COVID-19 infection, was successfully treated with TPE.

COVID-19-associated Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis-like Disease in 2 Children.

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic was caused by the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Although the predominant clinical presentation is a respiratory disease, neurologic manifestations are being recognized increasingly. CASE REPORT: We report 2 children 9 years of age who developed acute disseminated encephalomyelitis-like disease associated with SARS-CoV-2. Seizures and encephalopathy were the main central nervous system symptoms. The cerebrospinal fluid analysis performed within the first week of disease onset showed elevated protein in both children with normal cell count and no evidence of infection including negative SARS-CoV-2 by antibody and polymerase chain reaction. Brain magnetic resonance imaging revealed T2A, fluid-attenuated inversion recovery cortical and subcortical hyperintensity without restricted diffusion consistent with acute disseminated encephalomyelitis-like disease. They received methylprednisolone followed by therapeutic plasma exchange. One of them showed complete clinical improvement and resolution in magnetic resonance imaging findings. The other developed laminar necrosis in brain magnetic resonance imaging and showed significant clinical improvement after therapeutic plasma exchange. He was positive for positive SARS-CoV-2 antibody in cerebrospinal fluid on day 55 of admission. They were both positive for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in serum after 2 weeks. CONCLUSIONS: Our two cases highlight the occurrence of acute disseminated encephalomyelitis-like disease as a postinfectious/immune-mediated complication of SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Evaluation of Pediatric Preseptal Cellulitis Cases Diagnosed with Meningitis by Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

Rhinosinusitis is a common infection and may rarely cause severe life-threatening orbital and intracranial complications. In this study, two cases with preseptal cellulitis and meningitis as a complication of rhinosinusitis were presented in the light of the literature. A nine years and two months old girl was admitted with complaints as fever, redness and swelling in the left eye. Physical examination revealed erythema and edema in the left lower and upper eyelids, and the eye movements were painless and normal in all directions. Her systemic examination was normal and there was no sign of meningeal irritation. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed ethmoid, frontal and sphenoid sinusitis and left cerebral hemisphere dural meningeal contrast enhancement. The patient was diagnosed with meningitis after lumbar puncture. After 14 days of appropriate antibiotic treatment, the patient recovered and was discharged. An eight years and five months old boy presented with fever, redness and swelling in the left eye was admitted. There were erythema and edema in the left lower and upper eyelid; the eye movements were painless in all directions and were complete. Systemic examination was normal; there was no sign of meningeal irritation. Pansinusitis and preseptal cellulitis findings were detected on computer tomography. The patient's fever persisted under treatment and erythema and edema of the eye became more evident. Orbital MRI was performed considering the complication and contrast enhancement was observed in the left frontal region. The patient was diagnosed with meningitis after lumbar puncture. After 14 days of appropriate antibiotic treatment, the patient recovered and was discharged. Intracranial complication due to preseptal sinusitis is rare but life-threatening. In these cases, we recommend the use of MRI as the radiological imaging method.

Sex estimation in a contemporary Turkish population based on CT scans of the calcaneus.

Building a reliable biological profile from decomposed remains depends heavily on the accurate estimation of sex. A variety of methods based on every single skeletal element have been developed over the years for different populations employing both osteological and virtual methods. The latter seem to be a reasonable alternative in countries lacking osteological reference collections. The current study used 3D virtual models of calcanei from CT scans of living adults to develop a sex estimation method for contemporary Turkish. Four hundred and twenty eight calcanei CT scans were analysed. The sample was divided in two subsamples: an original (N=348) and a validation sample (N=80) with similar distribution of males and females. Nine classical measurements were taken using the 3D models of the calcanei and two different statistical methods (Discriminant function analysis and Binary logistic regression) were used. Classification accuracy ranged from 82% to 98% for the validation sample and it was consistently high using any of the two methods. Sex bias seems to be lower for most of the logistic regression equations compared to the discriminant functions. These results, however, need further testing to be verified. Based on the results of this study we recommend the use of both methods for sex estimation from the measurements of the calcaneus bone in a Turkish population.

Evaluation of Liver, Kidney, and Spleen Elasticity in Healthy Newborns and Infants Using Shear Wave Elastography.

OBJECTIVES: Elasticity measurements of tissues can be valuable in the diagnosis and management of various diseases. The aim of this study was to determine the elasticity values for normal liver, kidney, and spleen of healthy newborns and infants using shear wave elastography (SWE) imaging. METHODS: A total of 50 healthy term newborns and infants (19 girls and 31 boys; mean age 20.1 days, range 1 to 70 days) were examined by an experienced pediatric radiologist using SWE. None of them had any liver, kidney or spleen disease, or any other systemic disease that could affect these organs secondarily. All newborns and infants had a normal abdominal ultrasound scan. RESULTS: Age, sex, weight, height, and body mass index had no significant effects on shear wave velocity (SWV) values of liver and spleen. The SWV values of both kidneys decreased with age, weight, height, and body mass index. The mean SWV values were 1.70 m/s (range: 1.23-2.43 m/s) for the liver, 1.69 m/s (range: 0.8-2.40 m/s) for the right kidney, 1.70 m/s (range: 0.9-2.49 m/s) for the left kidney, and 2.03 m/s (range: 1.28-2.48 m/s) for the spleen. CONCLUSIONS: Shear wave elastography can be used to measure liver, kidney, and spleen elasticity in newborns and infants. The standard values for abdominal organs allow differentiation of healthy versus pathological tissue. We measured the normal values of SWE in healthy newborns and infants as reference data.

Temporal High-Resolution Computed Tomography and Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Congenital Inner Ear Anomalies in Children.

Imaging plays an important role in determining indications of cochlear implantation and choosing candidates for the procedure in children. Temporal high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can display precisely the complex anatomic structure of inner ear. Although HRCT permits detailed imaging of bony structures, MRI gives valuable information about membranous labyrinth, internal acoustic canal, and vestibulocochlear nerve. Magnetic resonance imaging examination of the brain should be performed at the same time to evaluate any coexistent brain parenchymal abnormality. These imaging modalities are complementary methods in evaluating congenital inner ear anomalies. The aim of this pictorial essay is to reviewing temporal HRCT and MRI findings of congenital inner ear anomalies.

Pott Puffy Tumor in Children: A Rare Emergency Clinical Entity.

OBJECTIVES: Pott puffy tumor (PPT) is defined as soft tissue swelling of the forehead due to subperiosteal edema, accumulation of pus, or granulation tissue. It is associated with osteomyelitis of frontal bone secondary to frontal sinusitis. Pott puffy tumor can be complicated by preseptal and orbital cellulitis and intracranial infection. METHODS: Six patients diagnosed with and treated for PPT in Pediatric Clinic of Uludag University Faculty of Medicine from 2010 to 2015 were reviewed retrospectively. Age, sex, presenting symptoms and signs, laboratory and radiological findings, as well as intracranial complications and treatment modalities of all patients were evaluated. RESULTS: The authors present 6 pediatric patients of PPT, 5 males and 1 female with a mean age of 11 years (age range, 7-18 years). All patients presented with headache, fever, and tender frontal swelling. Two of the patients had epidural abscess and 1 had preseptal orbital cellulitis in addition to PPT. All of them had computed tomography scan and/or magnetic resonance imaging. Endoscopic sinus surgery was performed in 4 patients and 2 patients underwent neurosurgical intervention with antibiotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: Pott puffy tumor may be associated with potentially dangerous intracranial complications. Early diagnosis and treatment are essential to reduce morbidity and mortality. Imaging plays an important role in the diagnosis of the disease and the detection of its complications.

Do the manipulations in pediatric inguinal hernia operations affect the vascularization of testes?

PURPOSE: The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of manipulations performed in inguinal hernia operations on testicular perfusion, in pediatric age group using Doppler ultrasonography (DUS). METHODS: In this prospective clinical trial, 51 boys who underwent elective inguinal hernia repair were examined before the operation and in early-late postoperative periods. Blood flow indices of centripetal and capsular arteries including peak systolic velocity (PSV), end-diastolic velocity (EDV), and resistivity index (RI) were examined by DUS. RESULTS: There was a statistically significant increase in early postoperative PSV and RI values compared with preoperative findings. These values turned to normal in late postoperative period. The increase in early and decrease in late postoperative EDV values were not statistically significant compared to preoperative findings. CONCLUSIONS: The surgical manipulations performed in inguinal hernia operations in children cause transient changes in testes vascularization in early postoperative period but turns to normal late postoperatively.