AIM: To describe the epidemiology of idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) in the Nordic countries, to define clinical subgroups and to investigate factors predicting chronic disease. METHODS: A prospective registration was done from 1998 to…
AIM: This study examines parental satisfaction with care received in the context of a life-limiting fetal diagnosis and subsequent birth. METHODS: Survey methods were utilized to embed the Quality Indicators (QI) and Parental Satisfaction of…
AIM: To investigate paediatricians' expectations and perspectives of genetic testing for children with developmental disorders. METHODS: Paediatricians working in a developmental clinic were surveyed each time they ordered a chromosomal microarray…
AIM: We compared neonatal deaths and end-of-life decisions in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) in a Dutch tertiary children's hospital. SUBJECTS: All 235 full-term infants who died within 28 days of life…
Aim: This work explores the experiences and meaning attributed by parents who underwent the decision-making process of withholding and/or withdrawing life-sustaining treatment for their newborn. Methods: Audio-recorded face-to-face interviews were…
In the last 20 years, the prevalence of children on domiciliary long-term ventilation (LTV) has increased in many countries, and in Italy it is now 4.3 of the 100 000. The complex management of these patients’ conditions requires highly specialised…
AIM: To enhance our knowledge on why adolescents with a chronic condition (insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, IDDM) choose to smoke despite possible awareness of health risks. METHODS: Twelve patients aged 15-20 with IDDM who smoked cigarettes…
BACKGROUND: Fabry disease is a rare X-linked disorder caused by deficient activity of the enzyme alpha-galactosidase A. This produces progressive lysosomal accumulation of globotriaosylceramide throughout the body, leading to organ failure and…
AIM: Children with refractory or high-risk malignancies frequently suffer from poor quality of life during palliative care. This study explored the effect of metronomic drug administration on survival and quality of life in paediatric patients with…
Physiological, plasma beta-endorphin and cortisol responses to nasotracheal intubation were studied in 20 distressed infants of median age 0.3 days (range 0.1-23 days) randomized into groups given pethidine 1 mg/kg (n = 10) or alfentanil 20…
Aim: To describe the experience involving the early introduction of palliative care (PC) in oncological patients treated within the paediatric oncology unit of the Istituto Nazionale Tumori of Milan and compare this cohort with a cohort of patients…
AIM: This study described end-of-life care for children affected by spinal muscular atrophy type 1 (SMA1), which is characterised by progressive muscle weakness and develops in the first six months of life. METHODS: We retrospectively analysed 17…
Aim Specialised paediatric palliative care has not previously been a priority in Denmark. The aim of this study was to support its development and organisation, by examining why and where children died using official national data for 1994–2014.…
The presence in blood of proteins normally confined to the cytoplasm of brain cells is considered peripheral evidence of brain damage. Only recently have these proteins been measured in the blood of children at risk of brain damage. To show the value…
AIM: This Italian study investigated home-based palliative care for young children and how long it took parents to meet their needs. METHODS: The study population consisted of 33 families with a child under the responsibility of the Veneto Regional…
Physicians often disclose serious news with patients and families; however, many clinicians experience anxiety around these conversations.1 Fear of their patients' and their own emotional reactions may cause providers to avoid these conversations…
Communication is as important as the drug and the knife in medical care, particularly when patients are facing life-threatening conditions. However, the ability to communicate effectively has been commonly associated with strong emotional barriers…
The clinical courses of 17 JNCL patients were analyzed retrospectively with the use of a simple, disease-specific scoring system. The mean observation period was 14 years (range 8-18 years). Scores of 0 (maximal dysfunction) to 3 (normal function)…
AIM: Parents are increasingly confronted with loss during their child's end of life. Healthcare professionals struggle with parental responses to loss. This study aimed to understand parental coping with grief during their child's end of life.…
Aim: No studies have described long-term paediatric home respiratory support in Nordic countries. We examined the clinical characteristics and long-term outcomes of paediatric patients who received continuous positive airway pressure,…
Severe neurological handicaps in children are frequently accompanied by growth retardation. We have studied 13 severely neurologically impaired children in an institution to see if their poor growth was related to a low intake of energy and…
AIM: To determine the prevalence and associations of self-reported and parent-reported pain in children with cerebral palsy (CP) of all severities., METHOD: Cross-sectional design using a questionnaire; analysis using ordinal regression. Children…
AIM: This study described the development, and pilot evaluation, of the Implementing Pediatric Advance Care Planning Toolkit (IMPACT). METHODS: Key elements of paediatric advance care planning (ACP) were defined using a systematic review, a survey of…
AIM: Perinatal deaths occurring outside the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) are rarely recorded in outcome studies, despite having a direct impact on perinatal statistics. Our aim was to investigate the timing and modes of perinatal deaths that…
AIM: Understanding of coping strategies that parents use before the death of their child is crucial, and will enable us to best provide support. The current study aimed to explore parents' coping strategies, and map these onto an existing theoretical…
AIM: Understanding of coping strategies that parents use before the death of their child is crucial, and will enable us to best provide support. The current study aimed to explore parents' coping strategies, and map these onto an existing theoretical…
This study was undertaken to characterize the current feeding situation and nutritional status of moderately or severely disabled children with cerebral palsy (CP). Thirty-five children with CP (17 with diplegia, 11 with dystonia, 6 with tetraplegia…
AIM: To explore and compare acute and long-term care professionals' perspectives about paediatric palliative care. METHODS: Focus group interviews were conducted in 2016-2017 with professionals from acute (Emergency Department, Intensive Care Unit)…
AIM: To explore and compare acute and long-term care professionals' perspectives about pediatric palliative care. METHODS: Focus group interviews were conducted in 2016-2017 with professionals from acute (Emergency Department, Intensive Care Unit)…
Clinical and neonatal screening methods using a tandem mass spectrometer are clearly a model for modern laboratory testing in the new Millennium. By the year 2000, more than 1 million blood and plasma samples will have been tested in laboratories…
Aim: Paediatricians caring for severely ill children may receive requests for physician-assisted dying (PAD). Dutch euthanasia law only applies to patients over 12 who make well-considered requests. These limitations have been widely debated, but…
The World Health Organization describes paediatric palliative care (PPC) as the active total care of the child's body, mind and spirit and supporting their family.1 It should be established as early as possible and continued along the entire disease…
We describe a male patient with late onset globoid cell leukodystrophy (GLD) (Krabbe's disease) still alive at 24 years of age, with a well preserved intellectual and communicative capacity, in contrast to visual failure and severe central pyramidal…
