Comparison of clinical efficacy between 3-day combined clavulanate/amoxicillin preparation treatment and 10-day amoxicillin treatment in children with pharyngolaryngitis or tonsillitis.

The efficacy of 3-day treatment with a combined clavulanate/amoxicillin preparation (Clavamox combination dry syrup for pediatric cases) and 10-day treatment with amoxicillin against pediatric pharyngolaryngitis and tonsillitis caused by Group A ß-hemolytic Streptococcus was compared. Among the patients included in the efficacy evaluation (54 from the clavulanate/amoxicillin group and 43 from the amoxicillin group), the clinical response rate on completion of treatment was 98.1 % in the clavulanate/amoxicillin group and 92.9 % in the amoxicillin group, thus supporting the equivalent efficacy of these two therapies. The Group A ß-hemolytic Streptococcus eradication rate at approximately 1-2 weeks after completion/discontinuation of treatment was 65.4 % in the clavulanate/amoxicillin group and 85.4 % in the amoxicillin group. Even in cases from which the pathogen continued to be isolated, relapse/recurrence of clinical symptoms was seldom seen. Urinalysis, conducted to assess the presence or absence of acute glomerulonephritis, revealed no abnormality in any patient. These results suggest that 3-day treatment with this clavulanate/amoxicillin preparation is expected to provide a valid means of treating pediatric pharyngolaryngitis and tonsillitis caused by Group A ß-hemolytic Streptococcus.

Incidence of bacterial coinfection with respiratory syncytial virus bronchopulmonary infection in pediatric inpatients.

Bacterial coinfection occurs in pediatric bronchopulmonary infections caused by respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), but the incidence is uncertain. Our subjects are 188 pediatric inpatients having RSV bronchopulmonary infection in two hospitals in Chiba Prefecture between 2005 and 2007. On admission, antigen detection kits using nasopharyngeal aspirate were performed to detect RSV infection and washed sputum bacterial culture was performed to detect bacterial infection. Of the 188 pediatric inpatients with RSV bronchopulmonary infection, 95 (50.5%) patients were aged less than 1 year, 57 (30.3%) were aged 1-2 years, and 36 (19.1%) were aged 2 years or more. Thirty-six (19.1%) patients were associated with bronchial asthma attacks. Pathogenic bacteria were predominantly isolated from 43.6% of the patients. The three most frequently isolated bacteria were Haemophilus influenzae (43.9%), Streptococcus pneumoniae (36.6%), and Moraxella catarrhalis (29.3%). We found that 38.9% of H. influenzae strains were ß-lactamase-nonproducing ampicillin-resistant strains. All S. pneumoniae strains were penicillin G (PcG) sensitive. However, 21.9% of S. pneumoniae strains showed PcG minimum inhibitory concentration values of 2 µg/ml. RSV bronchopulmonary infections in hospitalized children are often associated with antimicrobial-resistant bacterial infection in their lower airways. These results indicate that we should be aware of bacterial coinfections in the management of pediatric inpatients with RSV bronchopulmonary infection.

[Incidence of community-acquired pneumonia and pneumococcal pneumonia, among children in Chiba City, Japan].

Population-based studies on community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) are rare in Japan. Among 984 Chiba City children admitted with CAP to 19 local hospitals in 2005, 854 were younger than 5 years old. The annual CAP incidence among children < 5 years old was 19.7 per 1,000. Five, 4 of whom were under 5 years old, had pneumococcus isolated from blood. The incidence of CAP with pneumococcal bacteremia was 9.21 per 100,000 among those < 5 years old.

[Studies of treatment for Haemophilus influenzae type b meningitis in children].

We summarize 41 cases of bacterial meningitis in the last 11 years caused by Haemophilus influenzae. All isolates were serotype b strain (Hib). Initial chemotherapy was started with ceftriaxone (CTRX) in 22 cases, ampicillin plus cefotaxime (CTX) in 9, CTRX plus panipenem/betamipron in 5, and CTX in 2. Some 31 cases were treated mainly with CTRX. Although therapeutic antibiotics showed good susceptibility for isolates, 8 complicated cases (19.5%) occurred. Sequalae were observed in 7 (17.1%) but none were fatal. Five strains with elevated MIC of CTX (0.12 to 1 microg/mL) recovered after 2001, and 3 of 5 strains also showed elevated MIC of CTRX (0.12 to 0.5 microg/mL), but all were cured completely with CTRX. At present, no treatment failures due to antibiotic resistance have been observed, and CTRX remains suitable as initial therapy for Hib meningitis. A decline in susceptibility for third-generation cephalosporin against beta-lactamase-nonproducing ampicillin-resistant H. influenzae is emerging, however, so it will be necessary to consider combination therapy with CTRX given the foreseeable trend in MICs.

The importance of bacterial superantigens produced by Staphylococcus aureus in the treatment of atopic dermatitis using povidone-iodine.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is frequently associated with intestinal and cervical lesions. Staphylococcus aureus produces many kinds of toxins, the bacterial superantigens. The detection rate of toxins was 80.1% from 196 S. aureus strains. Neurological examinations revealed abnormalities in 59 out of 81 AD patients. Cervical magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed in 46 patients randomly and showed abnormal findings in 38 of these patients. In 23 patients who underwent MRI and duodenal biopsy, 3 were found to be normal neurologically and 2 patients showed normal duodenal tissue. However, 18 patients had abnormal findings both on neurological examination and in duodenal tissue. Serial duodenal biopsy tests were performed in 10 AD patients. In 5 patients, the findings of chronic duodenitis disappeared after the therapy with povidone-iodine. These data indicate that the therapy was effective not only for the skin lesions, but improved gastrointestinal tract lesions and cervical myelopathy, by eradicating bacterial superantigens.

[Continuous occurrence of two cases of Haemophilus influenzae type b meningitis caused by different strains in a day nursery].

Two cases of Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) meningitis were occurred continuously in a day nursery. Both isolates obtained from cerebrospinal fluids of 2 patients were beta lactamase producing amoxicillin/clavulanic acid sensitive strains. But biotypes and restriction fragment length polymorphism patterns by SmaI digested pulse-field gel electrophoresis of two isolates were different, respectively. Although it was already reported simultaneous occurrence of two cases of Hib meningitis caused by same strain through the nursery contact, none were reported by different strains. It was considered that two colonized strains had caused meningitis in two patients continuously.

The importance of disinfection therapy using povidone-iodine solution in atopic dermatitis.

The combination of the local disinfection therapy against Staphylococcus aureus with the conventional therapy for atopic dermatitis has been widely used, and the improvement in skin lesions has been reported to be associated with a remarkable decrease in IgE levels and reagin antibody titers. We have already reported that affected organs were not only the skin but also the gastrointestinal tract in a case with atopic dermatitis. In the present study, the duodenal tissues were examined by biopsy in 32 patients with atopic dermatitis, and mild or chronic duodenitis was observed in all samples. Toxins were examined by PCR from 180 Staphylococcus aureus strains obtained from our patients. The detection rate of toxins was 82.8%. In many patients, antitoxin IgE antibody titers corresponding to their types of toxin and IgE levels were decreased in a parallel manner as time passed. We found 1 patient who complained of paresthesia in all four limbs, and her neurological and radiological examinations showed moderate cervical spondylosis. Neurological examinations revealed some abnormalities in 43 out of 50 patients with atopic dermatitis, such as hyperreflexia of the legs. Cervical MRI was carried out randomly and showed abnormal findings in 21 of 25 patients, in whom 18 duodenal tissues were examined by biopsies.