Explore the vast range of titles available.

In the UK, there have been reports of significant reductions in paediatric emergency attendances and visits to the general practitioners due to COVID-19. A national survey undertaken by the UK Association of Children’s Diabetes Clinicians found that the proportion of new-onset type 1 diabetes (T1D) presenting with diabetes ketoacidosis (DKA) during this COVID-19 pandemic was higher than previously reported, and there has been an increase in presentation of severe DKA at diagnosis in children and young people under the age of 18 years. Delayed presentations of T1D have been documented in up 20% of units with reasons for delayed presentation ranging from fear of contracting COVID-19 to an inability to contact or access a medical provider for timely evaluation. Public health awareness and diabetes education should be disseminated to healthcare providers on the timeliness of referrals of children with T1D.

The social burden of Bangladesh’s already prevalent child marriage problem has further flared up amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. We aim to briefly report on the current scenario of underage marriage in Bangladesh from available sources and highlight concerns. The prevalence of child marriage has increased by at least 13% due to pandemic-enforced long-term school closure throughout the country, while many cases remain unreported. Exacerbated financial crisis, the prolonged shutdown of educational institutions and social insecurities are the principal triggering factors for such a high pace of child marriages. We urge the government and local administrations to address the current situation through concerted and integrated efforts to combat the early marriage crisis in Bangladesh.

The large language model (LLM) ChatGPT has been shown to have considerable utility across medicine and healthcare. This paper aims to explore the capabilities of GPT-4 (Generative Pre-trained Transformer 4) in answering Membership of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (MRCPCH) written paper-style questions. GPT-4 was subjected to four publicly available sample papers designed for those preparing to sit MRCPCH theory components. The model received no specialised training or reinforcement. The average score across all four papers was 78.1%. The model provided reasoning for its answers despite this not being required by the questions. This performance strengthens the case for incorporating LLMs into supporting roles for practising clinicians and medical education in paediatrics.

Despite its effectiveness, oral rehydration solution (ORS) and zinc use for managing diarrhoea among under-5 children (U5C) is low in Nigeria. We assessed the barriers to utilisation and sources of ORS/zinc in Oyo State, Nigeria. A cross-sectional mixed-methods design was adopted. Of the 1154 mothers in the quantitative study, only 71 (6.2%) reported recent U5C diarrhoea, of which 41 used ORS/zinc. Eleven of these 41 obtained ORS/zinc from private chemists, and six from government hospitals. Topmost barriers to utilisation of ORS/zinc are unavailability, unaffordability and poor awareness. Stakeholders should intensify efforts to sensitise women, and improve the availability and affordability of ORS and zinc therapy.

Accurate recording of forensically important information on bruises is vital in child protection proceedings (Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH)). An online survey was distributed to the RCPCH child protection committees to assess compliance with guidance. 56 individuals were contacted by email, 47 (84%) completed the survey. Results showed that the paediatricians always record size (n=41; 87%), site (n=45; 96%), shape (n=32; 68%) and colour (n=36; 77%); n=10; 22% of the paediatricians stated that they ‘always’ used a ranking system for likelihood of abuse; n=12; 35% of those surveyed ‘sometimes’ estimated the size of the bruise. Results showed that paediatric bruise reporting is inconsistent and incomplete for some fields compared with national guidance.

Inequity in routine childhood vaccination coverage is well researched. Pandemics disrupt infrastructure and divert health resources from preventive care, including vaccination programmes, leading to increased vaccine preventable morbidity and mortality. COVID-19 control measures have resulted in coverage reductions. We conducted a rapid review of the impact of pandemics on existing inequities in routine vaccination coverage. PICO search framework: Population: children 0–18 years; Intervention/exposure: pandemic/epidemic; Comparison: inequality; Outcome: routine vaccination coverage. The review demonstrates a gap in the literature as none of the 29 papers selected for full-paper review from 1973 abstracts identified from searches met the inclusion criteria.

The global impact of COVID-19 on children emphasises the need for effective vaccination. While most cases are mild, those with underlying conditions face severe risks. Public health agencies promote various paediatric vaccination approaches. Japan universally recommends vaccination, while Korea prioritises high-risk children. Despite similar healthcare systems, Japan’s coverage rates (19%–72%) surpass Korea’s (2%–55%). Korea’s child death rates are higher, indicating increased risk. Both lack methods to address individual risks, hindering prevention. This study advocates universal vaccination to mitigate future pandemics’ impact on children systematically.

Language barriers, if not adequately addressed, can prevent effective communication, impact patient safety and experience. Our research on language preference within the paediatric inpatient and outpatient services in west London revealed that 20% and 56%, respectively, would prefer to communicate in an alternative language than English. When we conducted emotional mapping analysis patients reported feeling ‘invisible’ and ‘not involved’ due to the lack of communication in their preferred language. Here, we describe our analysis and pilot intervention of using translated asthma care plans that aims to improve patient care, experience and outcomes by minimising the impact of language barriers.

This retrospective study was conducted in a neonatal intensive care unit in Beijing. Patients whose blood culture yielded Candida utilis during hospitalisation from January 2009 to December 2017 were enrolled. Thirteen preterm infants of median gestational age 29.85 weeks were included. Laboratory tests on the day of onset showed thrombocytopaenia in 11 patients, granulocytopaenia in eight and elevated C-reactive protein in seven. No fungal endophthalmitis, renal infection, carditis or involvement of other end organs was observed in any of the cases. All 13 patients were cured after fluconazole therapy.