Plateletcrit: A possible biomarker of inflammation in hepatitis A infection

Objectives

Hepatitis A (HepA) virus is a common infection worldwide that causes inflammation of the liver. Platelet index, particularly plateletcrit (PCT) which shows percentage of blood occupied by platelets, is thought to be potential marker of inflammation. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the changes in PCT percentages during HepA infection.

Subjects and Methods

Seventy-three children with a diagnosis of acute HepA infection and 68 age- and sex-matched healthy controls were enrolled in this study. Their values of platelet indices [PCT and mean platelet volume (MPV)] obtained from complete blood counts, which were analyzed by XN-1000 analyzer, were statistically compared with each other.

Results

PCT and MPV of the patients were found to be higher than those of controls (8.89 ± 1.30 vs 8.03 ± 0.89 for MPV and 0.29 ± 0.11 vs 0.24 ± 0.05 for PCT; P = 0.000, P = 0.002, respectively). In addition, PCT and platelet counts showed a significant negative correlation with alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels, which indirectly represents inflammation in the liver (PCT: r = -0.368, P = 0.002; platelet count: r = -0.304, P = 0.009). In contrast, MPV levels were not found to demonstrate any correlation with ALT (r = -0.205, P = 0.082).

Conclusion

Both MPV and PCT are capable of reflecting the inflammation during acute HepA inflammation. Also, PCT shows a significant negative correlation with the degree of inflammation.

Respiratory Distress and Severe Anemia in a Child With Idiopathic Pulmonary Hemosiderosis

Idiopathic pulmonary hemosiderosis is an infrequent cause of pulmonary hemorrhage in children. It is classically defined by the triad of recurrent hemoptysis, iron-deficiency anemia, and diffuse parenchymal infiltration without an obvious cause. The pathogenesis remains unexplained, diagnosis may be difficult, and the clinical course exceedingly variable. A 4-year-old girl was admitted to the hospital with complaints of dyspnea, and skin and mucous membrane pallor. The suspicion of idiopathic pulmonary hemosiderosis led to the use of corticosteroid therapy with rapid improvement in clinical condition and discharge from hospital.

Dynamic thiol/disulfide homeostasis in children with community-acquired pneumonia

BACKGROUND

Alteration in thiol level under oxidative stress may contribute to community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). The goal of this study was to determine whether there are changes in thiol/disulfide homeostasis and nitric oxide (NO) in children with CAP.

METHODS

In total, 130 participants were involved in the study. Of these, 65 had been diagnosed with CAP on admission, and the remaining 65 were healthy individuals. Serum total thiol and native thiol were measured in each participant using a novel automated spectrophotometric method. The amount of dynamic disulfide bonds and related ratios were calculated from these values. Serum NO was measured on chemiluminescence assay.

RESULTS

Average native thiol, total thiol, and disulfide in the CAP group were significantly lower than in the healthy individuals (P < 0.0001, P < 0.0001, P = 0.0126, respectively). In addition, disulfide/native thiol (P = 0.0002), and disulfide/total thiol ratios (P = 0.0004) were significantly higher, whereas the native thiol/total thiol ratio (P = 0.0004) was lower in the CAP group. High serum NO was noted in the CAP group (P = 0.0003), but there was no marked correlation between thiol/disulfide and NO.

CONCLUSION

The changes in endogenous thiol levels under oxidative stress may be associated with the pathogenesis of CAP in pediatric patients.

Association between neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio with ductus arteriosus patency in preterm newborns

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to assess the influence of neutrophil to lymphocyte (N/L) ratio and platelet indices on patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) in preterm infants.

BACKGROUND

PDA is a common problem with potentially serious associated morbidities in preterm neonates.

METHODS

Premature infants with hemodynamically significant PDA (n = 47) and a control group without PDA (n = 50) who were hospitalized in the neonatal intensive care unit were retrospectively evaluated. The characteristics, perinatal factors, N/L ratio, platelet counts and other platelet indices of the infants in both groups during the first 3 days of life were recorded.

RESULTS

Platelet counts were significantly lower in the patient group than in the control group (p = 0.0343). There was a marked positive correlation between body weight and N/L ratio in preterm infants with PDA (p = 0.0001). PDA was associated with low platelet count.

CONCLUSION

Our results showed that N/L ratio is positively correllated with body weight in PDA group. These data suggest that platelet counts and N/L ratio might be useful predictors for the early diagnosis and evaluation of the clinical course of PDA in preterm infants (Tab. 2, Ref. 28).