Oxidative stress is considered pivotal in the pathophysiology of sepsis. Oxidants modulate heat shock proteins (Hsp), interleukins (IL), and cell death pathways, including apoptosis. This multicenter prospective observational study was designed to ascertain whether an oxidant/antioxidant imbalance is an independent sepsis discriminator and mortality predictor in intensive care unit (ICU) patients with sepsis (n = 145), compared to non-infectious critically ill patients (n = 112) and healthy individuals (n = 89). Serum total oxidative status (TOS) and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) were measured by photometric testing. IL-6, -8, -10, -27, Hsp72/90 (ELISA), and selected antioxidant biomolecules (Ζn, glutathione) were correlated with apoptotic mediators (caspase-3, capsase-9) and the central anti-apoptotic survivin protein (ELISA, real-time PCR). A wide scattering of TOS, TAC, and TOS/TAC in all three groups was demonstrated. Septic patients had an elevated TOS/TAC, compared to non-infectious critically ill patients and healthy individuals (p = 0.001). TOS/TAC was associated with severity scores, procalcitonin, IL-6, -10, -27, IFN-γ, Hsp72, Hsp90, survivin protein, and survivin isoforms -2B, -ΔΕx3, -WT (p < 0.001). In a propensity probability (age-sex-adjusted) logistic regression model, only sepsis was independently associated with TOS/TAC (Exp(B) 25.4, p < 0.001). The AUC_TOS/TAC (0.96 (95% CI = 0.93–0.99)) was higher than AUC_TAC (z = 20, p < 0.001) or AUC_TOS (z = 3.1, p = 0.002) in distinguishing sepsis. TOS/TAC, TOS, survivin isoforms -WT and -2B, Hsp90, IL-6, survivin protein, and repressed TAC were strong predictors of mortality (p < 0.01). Oxidant/antioxidant status is impaired in septic compared to critically ill patients with trauma or surgery and is related to anti-apoptotic, inflammatory, and innate immunity alterations. The unpredicted TOS/TAC imbalance might be related to undefined phenotypes in patients and healthy individuals.

Food allergies are a growing public health problem during childhood, significantly affecting the health and quality of life of children and their families. The aim of this study was to investigate parent-reported food allergic reactions among preschool children in Greece. A cross-sectional survey was conducted using an anonymous online questionnaire completed by parents or legal guardians of 151 preschool children aged 3–6.5 years. Fifty-seven percent of participating parents reported that their child had experienced a food allergic reaction-related. The most commonly reported symptoms were skin rash, eczema and itching, while cow’s milk and dairy products were the most frequently reported allergenic foods. Among children with parent-reported food allergic reactions (n = 86), 8.1% had a reported diagnosis of asthma and 7.0% had experienced a food-induced anaphylactic reaction requiring adrenaline administration. No statistically significant associations were found between gender, age and the occurrence of parent-reported food allergic reactions. The findings indicate that parent-reported food allergic reactions were frequently reported within the study sample. However, because the results were based exclusively on parental reports and were not clinically confirmed, they should not be interpreted as estimates of the prevalence of food allergy in the general population. Future nationwide studies using representative sampling strategies and standardized diagnostic methods are warranted.