Demographic and clinical characteristics of newborn pneumothorax patients and their effects on respiratory function tests during childhood.

PURPOSE: Pneumothorax is defined as the presence of air between the parietal and visceral leaves of the pleura, resulting in lung collapse. The aim of this study was to evaluate the respiratory functions of these patients when they reach school age and to reveal whether they cause permanent respiratory pathology. METHODS: The files of 229 patients who were hospitalised in a neonatal intensive care clinic had received a diagnosis of pneumothorax and had undergone tube thoracostomy were included in a retrospective cohort review. The respiratory functions of participants in the control and patient groups were evaluated using spirometry in a prospective cross-sectional study design. RESULTS: The study found the rates of pneumothorax to be higher in males, term infants and after caesarean delivery, mortality was 31%. Among patients who underwent spirometry, those with a history of pneumothorax had lower forced expiratory volume at timed intervals of 0.5 to 1.0 (FEV1), forced vital capacity (FVC), FEV1/FVC, peak expiratory flow (PEF) and forced expiratory flow 25-75% (MEF25-75). FEV1/FVC ratio was significantly lower (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Patients treated for pneumothorax in the neonatal period should be evaluated for obstructive pulmonary diseases during childhood using respiratory function tests.

Is Oral Food Challenge as Safe Enough as It Seems?

BACKGROUND: Oral food challenges (OFCs) assist in the diagnosis of food allergies and are essential to determine whether an allergy has been outgrown. During the OFC, a medical procedure e introduces foods suspected to be allergenic orally in increasing doses. Mild skin reactions such as urticaria or rarely serious life-threatening reactions such as anaphylaxis may develop. OBJECTIVE: In this study, we aimed to retrospectively evaluate the clinical and laboratory characteristics of patients who experienced anaphylaxis during open OFCs in a tertiary care children's hospital. METHODS: Patients who underwent OFCs to confirm the presence of a food allergy or to assess tolerance status at the University of Health Sciences, Ankara, Dr. Sami Ulus Maternity and Children Training and Research Hospital, Pediatric Allergy and Immunology Outpatient Clinic between 1 January 2013 and 1 February 2016, were included in the study. Patients' data were obtained retrospectively from electronic medical records and challenge chart reviews. RESULTS: A total of 623 OFCs were performed during the period studied. Nine patients (1.4%) between 13 and 67 months of age (mean age: 38.3 months) developed anaphylaxis during their OFC. CONCLUSION: OFCs should be performed in a hospital or outpatient office under medical supervision that is adequate for anaphylaxis intervention by an allergy specialist. Close observation of objective and subjective symptoms is essential during the challenge because there are no laboratory tests that can predict an anaphylactic diagnosis or the severity of the reaction.