We studied the attitudes with regard to occupational vaccines and vaccination coverage among healthcare workers in pediatric departments. Completed vaccination rates were 33%, 33%, 41.7%, 3%, 5.8%, 69.2% and 36.3% against measles, mumps, rubella, varicella, hepatitis A, hepatitis B and tetanus-diphtheria, respectively. Susceptibility rates were 14.2%, 15.7%, 14.6%, 7.6%, 87.4%, 22.6% and 61.8% for measles, mumps, rubella, varicella, hepatitis A, hepatitis B and tetanus-diphtheria, respectively. Mandatory vaccinations were supported by 70.6% of healthcare workers, with considerable differences by target disease.

Objectives: Immature gut motility in very low birth weight infants causes feeding intolerance. We evaluated the effect of domperidone, a prokinetic agent, on gastric emptying in very low birth weight infants. Methods: The study was conducted in a crossover design. Gastric emptying was assessed ultrasonographically by measuring the time it took the antral cross sectional area of the stomach to reach half of the value of the 1st measurement on 2 occasions: (1) upon administration of domperidone (0.3 mg/kg/8 h p.o.) for at least 2 days and (2) while patients received an equal quantity of sterile water. 11 infants were randomly assigned to receive domperidone before the 1st measurement and the remaining afterwards. There was a 3–5 day interval between the 2 measurements. At the time when both measurements were performed, every neonate had been receiving the same quantity and quality of milk. 12 infants were formula-fed while 10 were fed their own mother’s supplemented milk. Results: 22 infants with a mean (SD) birth weight of 1,377 g (319) and a mean (SD) gestational age of 30.2 weeks (2.1) were studied. The mean (SD) antral cross sectional area half-value time (in minutes) was 47.6 (23.9) in the domperidone group and 68.2 (25.5) in the control group (p = 0.008). There was no significant difference between formula-fed neonates and neonates fed their own mother’s milk in either group. Conclusions: Domperidone significantly reduces gastric emptying in preterm neonates, and this may account for its effect in cases of disturbances related to gut motility.

Over the last few decades, there has been an ongoing debate over both the optimal feeding mode for very premature neonates (VPN) as well as what their optimal growth should be. Despite the American Academy of Pediatric declaring since 1997 that the growth of VPN should follow the trajectory of intrauterine fetal growth, differences of opinion persist, feeding policies keep changing, and the growth and development of VPN remains extremely variable not only between countries, but even between neighboring neonatal units. Even the appropriate terminology to express poor postnatal growth (extrauterine growth restriction (EGR) and postnatal growth failure (PGF)) remains a subject of ongoing discussion. A number of recent publications have shown that by implementing breast milk fortification and closely following growth and adjusting nutrition accordingly, as per the consensus guidelines of the major Neonatal Societies, we could achieve growth that closely follows birth centiles. A recent position paper from EPSGAN recommending targeted nutritional support to cover the energy and protein deficits sustained by VPN during periods of critical illness further strengthens the above findings. Conclusion: We can promote better growth of VPN by ensuring a stable administration of sufficient calories and protein, especially in the first 2 weeks of life, implementing breast milk fortification, covering energy and protein deficits due to critical illness, and increasing feeding volumes as per the latest guidelines. The adoption of universal protocol for nutrition and growth of VPN is essential and will enable better monitoring of long-term outcomes for this population.

Erythromycin-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates from young carriers were tested for their antimicrobial susceptibility; additionally, inducibility of macrolide and clindamycin resistance was investigated in pneumococci carrying erm (A), erm (B), or mef (A). Of 125 strains tested, 101 (81%) were multidrug resistant. Different levels of induction were observed with erythromycin, miocamycin, and clindamycin in erm (B) strains; however, in erm (A) strains only erythromycin was an inducer. Induction did not affect macrolide MICs in mef (A) strains.

Background: Caffeine has been commonly used for prevention and treatment of apnea-related symptoms in premature infants. However, its side effects have not been thoroughly studied. We investigated whether caffeine affects gastric motility in very-preterm (VP) neonates. Methods: The study is a randomized crossover clinical trial. Twenty-two neonates with mean birth weight (BW) (standard deviation—SD) 1077 (229) g and mean gestational age (GA) (SD) 28.6 (2.1) weeks were recruited. Each neonate had its gastric emptying time checked twice with ultrasound assessment of changes in antral cross sectional area (ACSA). All neonates were sequentially allocated to the caffeine group (A) and the control group (B). Complications from the gastrointestinal tract were documented throughout the study. Results: Statistically significant difference was found with regards to the gastric emptying time [median, (range)] between caffeine and control group (p = 0.040). Additionally, in the neonates with BW 1000–1500 g and GA ≥ 28 weeks, the gastric emptying time (minutes) was significantly longer during caffeine treatment [44.5 (36–68.2)] and [40 (34.5–66.5)] respectively, as compared to the gastric emptying time during no caffeine treatment [27 (24.2–30)] (p = 0.002) and [27 (24.5–30)] (p = 0.001). The incidence of gastrointestinal (GI) complications was significantly greater in neonates receiving caffeine [6 (27.%)] as compared with those without caffeine treatment [1 (4.6%)] (p = 0.039). Conclusions: During caffeine treatment, a significantly delayed gastric emptying time was noted in all study neonates, especially in these with BW 1000–1500 g and those with GA ≥ 28 weeks. Further larger studies are necessary in order to confirm this interesting finding.