BACKGROUND/AIMS: Functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGID) affect 15%-20% of the general pediatric and adult population. Animal models suggest that a neonatal stress such as invasive procedures and maternal separation could be responsible for visceral hypersensitivity and FGID. We tested the hypothesis that congenital esophageal atresia (EA), a condition corrected during the neonatal period and associated with multiple stresses, is a clinically significant risk factor for the development of FGID later in life. We postulated that, to be clinically significant, the effect of neonatal stress on the incidence of FGID should be as strong as that of enteric infections in the development of irritable bowel syndrome in children. METHODS: Subjects with EA and healthy controls were enrolled in this multicenter cohort study. Gastrointestinal symptoms were assessed by a questionnaire and FGID was diagnosed using the Rome III criteria. RESULTS: Fifty-three children (25 girls; median age, 12 years) with EA were compared to 72 age- and sex-matched controls. Although 11 children with EA (21%) had a FGID diagnosis versus 8 controls (11%), this difference was not significant (chi2 = 2.20, P > 0.05). In subjects with EA, the presence of associated malformations, the occurrence of complications during the first month, and the length of hospital stay > 30 days did not influence the incidence of FGID. Chronic abdominal pain was present in 38% of subjects with EA versus 25% of controls (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Neonatal stress secondary to surgical correction of EA is not a clinically significant risk factor for the development of FGID in childhood.
Abdominal Pain ; Adult ; Child ; Cohort Studies ; Esophageal Atresia ; Gastrointestinal Diseases ; Humans ; Hypersensitivity ; Incidence ; Irritable Bowel Syndrome ; Length of Stay ; Life Change Events ; Models, Animal ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Risk Factors ; Rome

Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia is associated with high mortality and morbidity, requiring prompt and appropriate antimicrobial treatment. Therefore, it is important to detect methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) rapidly from blood cultures. Two immunochromatographic tests, BinaxNow S. aureus and BinaxNow PBP2a, were directly applied to 79 Bact/Alert bottles that were positive for Gram positive cocci in cluster aggregations. Sensitivity and specificity for the identification of S. aureus and determination of methicillin resistance were 94% and 87%, and 100% and 100%, respectively, with less than 30 min of performance time. These tests are efficient and rapid; these tests are valuable alternatives to more sophisticated and expensive methods used in the diagnosis of MRSA bacteremia.
Bacteremia ; Diagnosis ; Gram-Positive Cocci ; Methicillin Resistance ; Methicillin* ; Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus ; Mortality ; Staphylococcus aureus*