Evaluación de reactantes de fase aguda como predictores de bacteriemia en niños con fiebre, leucemia aguda y linfoma / Evaluation of acute-phase reactants as predictors of bacteremia in children with fever, acute leukemia, and lymphoma

Introducción: Para predecir una infección en estadios tempranos en niños con cáncer se han evaluado marcadores como ESD, PCR y PCT. Objetivo: evaluar la precisión diagnóstica para bacteriemia de estos marcadores al ingreso en niños con fiebre y leucemia aguda (LA) o linfoma (L) internados entre 2013-2016. Métodos: estudio analítico retrospectivo. Revisión de historias clínicas. Se calcularon sensibilidad, especificidad, valor predictivo positivo, valor predictivo negativo y área bajo la curva ROC para cada marcador en MedCalc® V16.8.4. Se obtuvo autorización del Comité de Ética. Resultados:en total se internaron 31 niños con diagnóstico de LA y L, 19 presentaron fiebre y 12 no. Hubo 40 episodios de fiebre clasificados en 4 grupos: bacteriemia 14 (35%), infección documentada microbiológicamente 5 (12.5%), infección documentada clínicamente 2 (5%) y fiebre de origen desconocido 19 (47.5%). Los niveles de PCT fueron mayores en el grupo de bacteriemia registrando un valor promedio de 1,17ng/ mL (p: 0.045). El área bajo la curva ROC entre el grupo con y sin bacteriemia fue de 0.50 para ESD, 0.65 para PCR y 0.83 para PCT con S de 77.78%, E de 66.67%, VPP de 50% y VPN de 92.86%. Discusión: la PCT mostró ser el más eficaz que ESD y PCR para predecir bacteriemia. se deben realizar investigaciones con biomarcadores con el objeto de disminuir el uso inadecuado de antibióticos en pacientes con fiebre secundaria a enfermedad y acortar los tiempos de tratamiento en pacientes con infecciones adecuadamente resueltas mejorando ampliamente la calidad de vida en niños con cáncer (AU)

Introduction: To predict infection in early stages in children with cancer, markers such as ESR, CRP, and PCT have been evaluated. Objective: To evaluate the diagnostic precision for bacteremia of these markers on admission of children with fever and acute leukemia (AL) or lymphoma (L) admitted between 2013- 2016. Methods: A retrospective analytical study. Review of the clinical records. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and area under the ROC curve were calculated for each marker in MedCalc® V16.8.4. The study was approved by the Ethics Committee. Results: Overall, 31 children with AL and L were admitted, 19 of whom presented with fever and 12 did not. There were 40 episodes of fever classified into 4 groups: bacteremia 14 (35%), microbiologically documented infection 5 (12.5%), clinically documented infection 2 (5%), and fever of unknown etiology 19 (47.5%). PCT levels were higher in the group with bacteremia with a mean value of 1.17ng/mL (p:0.045). The area under the ROC curve between the groups with and without bacteremia was 0.50 for ESR, 0.65 for CRP, and 0.83 for PCT with a sensitivity of 77.78%, specificity of 66.67%, PPV of 50%, and NPV of 92.86%. Discussion: PCT showed a greater efficacy than ESD and CRP to predict bacteremia. Research on biomarkers should be conducted to reduce the inadequate use of antibiotics in patients with fever secondary to disease and to shorten treatment times in patients with adequately resolved infections, thereby improving quality of life in children with cancer (AU)

Transient myeloproliferative disorder associated with trisomy 21, a wide range syndrome: report of two cases with trisomy 21 mosaicism.

Transient myeloproliferative disorder (TMD) is an uncommon syndrome strongly associated with abnormalities of chromosome 21. Blast transient proliferation appears most frequently at neonatal age and usually resolves spontaneously in two or three months. Two patients, a girl and a boy, with neonatal onset of TMD are reported. They both presented trisomy 21 mosaicism according to bone marrow cytogenetic analysis. Patient 1, on one end of the spectrum, showed a "classic" benign course with rapid resolution and favorable outcome. Patient 2, on the other hand, had two blast outbursts both followed by spontaneous remissions. He failed to thrive and never reached a good general condition, dying at 5 months of age from a respiratory infectious complication. The necropsy showed generalized extramedullary hemopoiesis without evidence of bone marrow blast infiltration or myelofibrosis. TMD has some clinical and laboratory features that make it unique and distinguishable from true congenital leukemia with which it may be initially mistaken. It usually has a benign course followed by a favorable outcome. As trisomy 21 mosaicism may not have overt phenotypic stigmata, it is possible that many cases of TMD in these children may have a silent, non-detected course. We also conclude that a favorable outcome is not always to be expected in TMD.

Results of treatment with an intensive combination induction regimen containing idarubicin in children with acute myeloblastic leukemia: preliminary report of the Argentine Group for Treatment of Acute Leukemia.

In April 1990, the Argentine Group for Treatment of Acute Leukemia began a multicenter trial for the treatment of previously untreated acute myeloblastic leukemia patients who were under 21 years of age. Initial treatment consisted of an 8-day induction phase with cytarabine together with idarubicin on days 3 to 5 and etoposide on days 6 to 8. A multidrug consolidation phase was subsequently administered and, after a treatment-free interval of 2 to 4 weeks, two 5-day intensification courses with high-dose cytarabine and etoposide were delivered with a 4-week interval between each course. Continuation therapy was started 2 to 4 weeks after the second course, with 6-thioguanine daily and cytarabine daily for 4 days every 4 weeks. Treatment was stopped after 18 months in children in continuous complete remission. A preliminary evaluation of this ongoing study included 36 patients with a mean age of 7.5 years (age range, 5 months to 16 years). The majority of patients had a French-American-British classification of M2 (n = 13) or M4 (n = 8). Complete remission was achieved by 91.7% of patients, while one died from sepsis in bone marrow hypoplasia and two were regarded as treatment failures. At a median follow-up of 12 months (range, 2 to 23 months) there were 12 adverse events: six bone marrow relapses, one bone marrow/skin relapse, and five deaths in complete remission (all deaths occurred during the consolidation phase). During the induction phase most of the patients experienced prolonged myelosuppression, and grade 3 to 4 toxicity (according to the Children's Cancer Group criteria) was frequently seen. Alopecia was universal. However, toxicity was manageable. We conclude that idarubicin in combination with cytarabine and etoposide is a highly effective regimen for induction in children with acute myeloblastic leukemia.