Publications by authors named "Francesca Stoppa"

Cefiderocol, a novel broad-spectrum cephalosporin, exhibits promising efficacy against carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative bacteria via a "Trojan horse" mechanism. Its pharmacokinetics (PK) and pharmacodynamics (PD) in critically ill patients, particularly under extracorporeal therapies such as Continuous Renal Replacement Therapy (CRRT) and hemoadsorption (HA), remain underexplored. This case report evaluates the PK/PD profile of cefiderocol in a 16-year-old male with relapsed B-cell leukemia, multi-organ failure, and septic shock treated with Continuous Venous-Venous Hemodiafiltration (CVVHDF) and Cytosorb® HA.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

(1) Background: Helmet Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (H-CPAP) has primarily been used in intensive care settings to treat moderate-to-severe bronchiolitis in infants. We aim to report on the feasibility of H-CPAP for selected infants with bronchiolitis in a pediatric ward. (2) Methods: A retrospective, observational, consecutive case series was studied of 26 patients who received H-CPAP on the pediatric ward from October 2022 to February 2023, including a description of patient outcomes and costs.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Pertussis continues to be a highly contagious respiratory infection, especially in children, with cyclical peaks of disease spread every three to five years. Here, we report relevant cases of infection between August 2023 and January 2024, and compare them with prevalence in pediatric patients admitted to the Reference Italian Pediatric Hospital, located in Rome, from January 2015 to July 2023. A total of 5464 tests for were performed during the study period, and 6.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

TBX4 gene, located on human chromosome 17q23.2, encodes for T-Box Transcription Factor 4, a transcription factor that belongs to the T-box gene family and it is involved in the regulation of some embryonic developmental processes, with a significant impact on respiratory and skeletal illnesses. Herein, we present the case of a female neonate with persistent pulmonary hypertension (PH) who underwent extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) on the first day of life and then resulted to have a novel variant of the TBX4 gene identified by Next-Generation Sequencing.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Perfluorocarbons (PFCs) are organic liquids derived from hydrocarbons in which some of the hydrogen atoms have been replaced by fluorine atoms. They are chemically and biologically inert substances with a good safety profile. They are stable at room temperature, easy to store, and immiscible in water.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: The current study aims at describing a sample of adolescents admitted to a tertiary referral pediatric hospital for drug self-poisoning and to identify variables that could explain and predict a higher severity of intoxication.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the cases of drug self-poisoning in adolescents admitted to the Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital between January 2014 and June 2022 requiring consultation by the local Pediatric Poison Control Center (PPCC). We reported the type and class of drug ingested and correlated the clinical characteristics of the patients with their Poison Severity Score.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Delirium, bed immobilization, and heavy sedation are among the major contributors of pediatric post-intensive care syndrome. Recently, the Society of Critical Care Medicine has proposed the implementation of daily interventions to minimize the incidence of these morbidities and optimize children functional outcomes and quality of life. Unfortunately, these interventions require important clinical and economical efforts which prevent their use in many pediatric intensive care units (PICU).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the virus that causes COVID-19, which can lead to a variety of symptoms from mild to severe, affecting people of all ages.
  • Children and infants typically experience milder symptoms, but infants can have a higher risk of hospitalization and severe illness.
  • The case study discusses a preterm infant who had a severe SARS-CoV-2 infection that resulted in cerebral venous thrombosis, which was effectively treated with steroids, hyperimmune plasma, and remdesivir.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a life-threatening condition characterized by a state of hyperinflammation. Blood purification techniques can blunt the inflammatory process with a rapidly relevant nonselective effect on the cytokine storm, thus potentially translating into survival benefit for these patients. In this cohort, we evaluated the impact of hemoadsorption with CytoSorb combined with continuous kidney replacement therapy used as adjunctive therapy in 6 critically ill children with multiple organ dysfunction due to HLH.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) has emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic as a new SARS-CoV-2-related entity, potentially responsible for a life-threatening clinical condition associated with myocardial dysfunction and refractory shock. We describe for the first time in a 14-year-old girl with severe MIS-C the potential benefit of an adjuvant therapy based on CytoSorb hemoperfusion and continuous renal replacement therapy with immunomodulatory drugs. We show in our case that, from the start of extracorporeal blood purification, there was a rapid and progressive restoration in cardiac function and hemodynamic parameters in association with a reduction in the most important inflammatory biomarkers (interleukin 6, interleukin 10, C-reactive protein, ferritin, and D-dimers).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objectives: To describe a pediatric case of cytokine release syndrome secondary to chimeric antigen receptor-modified T cells associated with acute respiratory distress syndrome.

Design: Case report.

Setting: PICU.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: To determine the clinical effect of continuous hemoperfusion with Cytosorb associated with standard Continuous Renal Replacement Therapy on hemodynamics and on clinically relevant outcome parameters in children with septic shock.

Design: Retrospective analysis.

Setting: Pediatric intensive care unit.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is used to support patients with severe respiratory and/or cardiac failure unresponsive to conventional treatments. Despite being one of the most complex supportive therapy used in intensive care unit, there is a still a lack of training programs dedicated to improve both clinical and nonclinical skills. The aim of the current study was to evaluate if the introduction of an ECMO high-fidelity simulation curriculum among personnel reduces the times to manage bedside emergencies and improves the behavioral skills.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Neonatal and pediatric ECMO is a high-risk procedure that should be performed only in expert centers. Children who are eligible for ECMO and are managed in hospitals without ECMO capabilities should be referred to the closest ECMO center before the severity of illness precludes safe conventional transport. When the clinical situation precludes safe conventional transport, ECMO should be provided on site with the patient transported on ECMO.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) is a common side effect of chemotherapy, in need of effective treatment. Preliminary data support the efficacy of scrambler therapy (ST), a noninvasive cutaneous electrostimulation device, in adults with CIPN. We test the efficacy, safety, and durability of ST for neuropathic pain in adolescents with CIPN.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Status epilepticus (SE) is a life-threatening neurological emergency. SE lasting longer than 120 min and not responding to first-line and second-line antiepileptic drugs is defined as 'refractory' (RCSE) and requires intensive care unit treatment. There is currently neither evidence nor consensus to guide either the optimal choice of therapy or treatment goals for RCSE, which is generally treated with coma induction using conventional anaesthetics (high dose midazolam, thiopental and/or propofol).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to define, in children following head trauma and GSC ≤ 8, at which level of intracranial pressure (ICP), the thermodilutional, and gas analytic parameters implicated in secondary cerebral insults shows initial changes.

Methods: We enrolled in the study 56 patients: 30 males and 26 females, mean age 71 ± 52 months. In all children, volumetric hemodynamic and blood gas parameters were monitored following initial resuscitation and every 4 h thereafter or whenever a hemodynamic deterioration was suspected.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objectives: To evaluate the safety and effectiveness of ultrasound-guided left brachiocephalic vein cannulation in infants and children with underlying bleeding conditions.

Design: Retrospective cohort.

Setting: PICU of a tertiary pediatric hospital.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Human parainfluenza viruses (HPIVs) infection, largely known to cause self-limiting bronchiolitis and pneumonia in immune competent patients, can lead to severe to fatal pulmonary disease in immune disorders, such as primary or acquired-immune deficiencies. We report the case of a 1-year-old child who developed an acute respiratory distress syndrome. Because of a progressive respiratory failure unresponsive to conventional treatment extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) was rapidly started.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background/aims: We hypothesized that sepsis could have an impact on the sensitivity of serum and urinary neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) and cystatin C (CysC) for acute kidney injury (AKI) diagnosis in critically ill children.

Methods: Serum NGAL (sNGAL) and urinary NGAL (uNGAL) and CysC were measured daily in the first 48 h from pediatric intensive care unit admission in 11 consecutive critically ill children with severe sepsis; a single measurement was made in a population of 10 healthy controls undergoing minor ambulatory surgery to exclude possible biases in the laboratory methods.

Results: uNGAL, serum CysC (sCysC), and urinary CysC (uCysC) levels were significantly increased in patients with septic AKI compared with septic patients without AKI, while sNGAL levels were not significantly different between septic patients with and without AKI.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF