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Abstract omitted due to copyright. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: The spread of resistant Salmonella strains continues to increase worldwide. It is necessary to establish epidemiologic information to determine an appropriate empiric antibiotic regimen (when indicated) in infants and children with suspected Salmonella infections for whom the results of susceptibility tests are not yet available. OBJECTIVES: The aim of the present study was to investigate resistance rates and their modifications among Salmonella enterica strains isolated from Italian children hospitalized for acute diarrhea over 5 years. In addition, when antibiotic treatment was indicated, we assessed the in vivo success of parenteral ceftriaxone therapy. METHODS: This study included children admitted consecutively for acute diarrhea to the Division of Pediatrics and Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, University of Florence, Italy, from January 1, 1997, to December 31, 2001. S enterica strains were isolated from stool cultures, biochemically identified, and serotyped. These isolates were tested by disk-diffusion assay, using the Kirby-Bauer method, for susceptibilities to ampicillin, ceftriaxone, ciprofloxacin, chloramphenicol, neomycin, tetracycline, and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole. The limits used for definition of resistance were those established by the guidelines of the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards. RESULTS: A total of 2003 children (1051 boys, 952 girls; median age, 10.3 years; age range, 1 month-16.8 years) with acute diarrhea were admitted to the study. S enterica strains were isolated using stool cultures from 218 (10.9%) children (108 boys, 110 girls; median age, 3.3 years; age range, 2 months-15.8 years). A total of 148 (67.9%) isolates were resistant to at least 1 antibiotic and 57 (26.1%) were multiresistant. The highest rates of resistance were those to tetracycline (132/218 [60.6%]), ampicillin (102/218 [46.8%]), and chloramphenicol (47/218 [21.6%]). The lowest rate of resistance was to ceftriaxone (4/218 [1.8%]). Overall, the rate of resistance to ciprofloxacin (19/218 [8.7%]) was significantly higher than that for ceftriaxone (P = 0.003). Salmonella typhimurium (119/218 [54.6%]) and Salmonella enteritidis (62/218 [28.4%]) were the most frequently identified serotypes. Ceftriaxone was effective in vivo in all 56 children who required antibiotic therapy. CONCLUSIONS: There was a high prevalence of resistant S enterica strains. Ceftriaxone was used effectively in the treatment of S enterica infection in the population studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The main objective of this article was to offer practical suggestions, given the existing evidence, for identifying and managing bacterial impetigo, abscess, and cellulitis in ambulatory and hospital settings., Methods: Five Italian pediatric societies appointed a core working group. In selected conditions, specially trained personnel evaluated quality assessment of treatment strategies according to the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) methodology. Only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and observational studies were included for quality assessment according to the GRADE methodology. MEDLINE, Ovid MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library databases were searched with a strategy combining MeSH and free text terms., Findings: The literature review included 364 articles focusing on impetigo, skin abscess, and cellulitis/orbital cellulitis. The articles included for quality assessment according to the GRADE methodology for impetigo comprised 5 RCTs and 1 observational study; for skin abscess, 10 RCTs and 3 observational studies were included; for cellulitis and erysipelas, 5 RCTs and 5 observational studies were included; and for orbital cellulitis, 8 observational studies were included. Recommendations were formulated according to 4 grades of strength for each specific topic (impetigo, skin abscesses, cellulitis, and orbital cellulitis). Where controversies arose and expert opinion was considered fundamental due to lack of evidence, agreement according to Delphi consensus recommendations was included., Implications: Based on a literature review and on local epidemiology, this article offers practical suggestions for use in both ambulatory and hospital settings for managing the most common bacterial SSTIs., (Copyright © 2019. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Purpose: With the aim to reduce waste in the health care system and avoid risks associated with unnecessary treatment, the Italian Panel of the National Guidelines for the Management of Acute Pharyngitis in Children joined the Choosing Wisely initiative., Methods: An ad hoc Choosing Wisely task force was selected to develop a candidate list of items for the top-5 list on pharyngitis medicine. Through a process of literature review and consensus, the final list of 5 items was chosen. Drafted recommendations were formulated and then reviewed by the task force members until a final consensus was reached., Findings: The 5 recommendations approved are: blood exams should not be performed; antibiotics should not be administrated unless microbiologic confirmation of streptococcal infection has been carried out; if a throat culture is performed, susceptibility tests on isolates should not be executed; antibiotic course should not be shortened; because penicillin V is not available in Italy, amoxicillin (50 mg/kg/d in 2-3 doses orally) for 10 days is the first choice treatment; and steroids should not be administered for the risk of masking possible underlying severe condition., Implications: This top-5 list can be a novel tool to spread the key messages of guidelines and to avoid unnecessary diagnostic procedures, and to promote a rational use of antibiotics in children., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier HS Journals, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: This article describes the recommendations of a group of scientific societies concerning the therapeutic approach to immunocompromised children with tuberculosis (TB)., Methods: Using the Consensus Conference method, relevant publications in English were identified by a systematic review of MEDLINE and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews from their inception until December 31, 2014., Findings: On the basis of their clinical experience and the published evidence, the group of experts concluded that, although immunosuppressed subjects are at greater risk of developing TB, none of the signs or symptoms is sensitive or specific enough to enable a diagnosis. Immunocompromised patients are at greater risk of developing extrapulmonary forms of TB, especially if they are adolescents, whereas pulmonary forms are more prevalent among younger patients. When TB is suspected, a combination of skin and immunologic tests and other clinical, radiologic, and microbiologic examinations can be used to assess the risk of infection or disease. If the TB diagnosis is confirmed, immunocompromised children should be treated by using a standard regimen with a minimum of 4 drugs for at least 9 to 12 months, during which the tolerability of the drugs and their interactions should be carefully evaluated., Implications: It is difficult to diagnose and treat TB in immunocompromised children. Thus, all pediatric patients undergoing immunosuppressive therapy who develop TB should be diagnosed and treated at a TB reference center, which should also be responsible for the recommended follow-up., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier HS Journals, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Interferon-γ release assays (IGRAs), including the commercially available T-SPOT.TB, QuantiFERON-TB Gold (QFT-G), and QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-Tube (QTF-G-IT), enable detection of circulating T lymphocytes responsive to specific Mycobacterium tuberculosis antigens. Studies of the potential role of serial IGRAs for assessment of response to anti-tubercular therapy are accumulating., Objective: The objective of this systematic review was to evaluate the potential clinical utility of serial IGRAs in anti-tubercular therapy., Methods: We conducted a literature search of the Cochrane Library and MEDLINE by PubMed, from database inception through October 1, 2011, for serial IGRA results in anti-tubercular therapy, in adults and children, using commercial stardardized assays. All types of articles in the English language were included. Meta-analysis was performed to estimate the pooled percentage of reversion from a positive to a negative IGRA value at 3- to 6-month follow-up., Results: According to inclusion and exclusion criteria, three T-SPOT.TB-based (n = 319 patients), three QFT-G-based (n = 75 patients), and seven QFT-G-IT-based (n = 558 patients) longitudinal studies were included. The percentage of patients with reversion from a positive to a negative IGRA value ranged from 5.71% to 13.93% for T-SPOT.TB, 5.26% to 71.05% for QFT-G, and 14.28% to 41.89% for QFT-G-IT assays. Meta-analysis estimation of reversion was feasible only for the QFT-G-IT assay, at 30.54% (95% CI, 22.89-38.75). In two pediatric studies, which were QFT-G-IT based (n = 122 children), the reported reversion rates were 14.28% and 20.33%, respectively., Conclusions: Because IGRAs require time and cost resources, and reversion from positive to negative IGRA values occurs in a minority of treated patients, monitoring IGRA changes over time seems to have only speculative value in adults. Data in children are poor, but are in line with results reported in adults., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier HS Journals, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Streptococcal pharyngitis is a frequently observed condition, but its optimal management continues to be debated., Objective: The goal of this study was to evaluate the available guidelines, developed at the national level, for the management of streptococcal pharyngitis in Western countries, with a focus on their differences., Methods: A literature search was conducted of the Cochrane Library, EMBASE, TRIP, and MEDLINE databases from their inception (1993 for the Cochrane Library, 1980 for EMBASE, 1997 for TRIP, and 1966 for MEDLINE) through April 25, 2010. The following search terms were used: pharyngitis, sore throat, tonsillitis, pharyngotonsillitis, Streptococcus pyogenes, Group A β-haemolytic Streptococcus pyogenes, and streptococcal pharyngitis. Searches were limited to type of article or document (practice guideline or guideline) with no language restrictions or language limits., Results: Twelve national guidelines were identified: 6 from European countries (France, United Kingdom, Finland, Holland, Scotland, and Belgium), 5 from the United States, and 1 from Canada. Recommendations differ substantially with regard to the use of a rapid antigen diagnostic test or throat culture and the indications for antibiotic treatment. The North American, Finnish, and French guidelines recommend performing one timely microbiologic investigation in suspected cases, and prescribing antibiotics in confirmed cases to prevent suppurative complications and acute rheumatic fever. According to the remaining European guidelines, however, acute sore throat is considered a benign, self-limiting disease. Microbiologic tests are not routinely recommended by these latter guidelines, and antibiotic treatment is reserved for well-selected cases. The use of the Centor score, for evaluation of the risk of streptococcal infection, is recommended by several guidelines, but subsequent decisions on the basis of the results differ in terms of which subjects should undergo microbiologic investigation. All guidelines agree that narrow-spectrum penicillin is the first choice of antibiotic for the treatment of streptococcal pharyngitis and that treatment should last for 10 days to eradicate the microorganism. Once-daily amoxicillin was recommended by 2 US guidelines as equally effective., Conclusion: The present review found substantial discrepancies in the recommendations for the management of pharyngitis among national guidelines in Europe and North America., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier HS Journals, Inc. All rights reserved.)