ESPID Approved Proposal for the 2021 Local Organizing Committee
ESPID are dfleighted to confirm the Local Organisers of the ESPID 2021 Geneva Annual Meeting have been approved to receive support for the follow project as per the terms and conditions of the LOC Grant:
Annual meeting (ESPID 2021) LOC Grant:
Paediatric Refugees from Ukraine in Switzerland: Evidence of current screening recommendations
Background: By mid-2022 over 5 million Ukrainian refugees are registered in Europe of which over 55’000 have asked for asylum in Switzerland. Of those 40-50% are estimated to be children and adolescents. Transit, overcrowding, poor shelter, and vulnerability put refugees at risk for infectious diseases [1, 2]. Current consensus recommendations on medical care for Ukrainian refugee children were published recently [3]. These are mainly based on limited data and represent expert option. Accompanying research evaluating these recommendations and implementation is therefore required.
Methods: The current recommendation include the following topics: Language, general paediatrics, vaccinations, screening for hepatitis C (HCV), tuberculosis (TB), human immunodeficiency (HIV) virus and mental health issues. In this project screening for HCV, TB, HIV and vaccinations will be evaluated.
Participating centers will include the University Children’s Hospital Basel and Geneva and the Childrens’ Hospital Lucerne. Further paediatricans, private practitioners and screening centers may also participate. All participating children and families will be approached by written informed consent in Ukrainian language. A minimal dataset will be collected epidemiological data and screening information from the selected topics. The study will include patients screened from August/September 2022 until end of December 2022.
Relevance: The findings will form the bases of updated recommendations and serve as a proof of concept on how research and quality assessment of refugee recommendations can be done.
References
1. Brandenberger, J., et al., A systematic literature review of reported challenges in health care delivery to migrants and refugees in high-income countries - the 3C model. BMC Public Health, 2019. 19(1): p. 755.
2. Brandenberger, J., et al., The global COVID-19 response must include refugees and migrants. Swiss Med Wkly, 2020. 150: p. w20263.
3.Jaeger, F.N., et al., Paediatric refugees from Ukraine: guidance for health care providers. Swiss Med Wkly, 2022. 152(21-22).
Increase in acute hepatitis of unknown origin among children – United Kingdom
An increase in acute hepatitis cases in children during the past few weeks has been reported in the United Kingdom. In England, there are approximately 60 cases under investigation with most cases being 2 to 5 years old. Some cases progressed to acute liver failure and have required transfer to specialist children’s liver units. A small number of children have undergone liver transplantation. Based on reports from the specialist units, no child has died. In Scotland, 11 cases which required hospital admission were children aged between 1-5 years and are under investigation. Most of the cases in Scotland presented from March 2022 onwards. In Wales, there are currently no known cases under investigation, but a very small number of cases from early 2022 had similar clinical presentations. In Northern Ireland, there are currently no confirmed cases reported.
The clinical syndrome in identified cases is of severe acute hepatitis with markedly elevated transaminases, often presenting with jaundice, sometimes preceded by gastrointestinal symptoms including vomiting as a prominent feature, in children up to the age of 16 years.
At present, the cause of hepatitis in these cases is unknown. The common viruses that can cause hepatitis (hepatitis viruses A, B, C, D and E) have not been detected in any of the cases. Some of the children hospitalised in England did test positive for SARS-CoV-2 and others for adenovirus. There is currently no clear connection between the reported cases. There is no known association with travel.
Investigations are underway across the UK to investigate the potential cause and information has been distributed to healthcare professionals and the general public to raise awareness.
ECDC and partners are sharing this information internationally to increase awareness among clinicians taking care of children and to assess and report whether there are any similar cases in other countries.
Clinicians are encouraged to report cases of acute hepatitis in children up to the age of 16 years with a serum transaminase >500 IU/L, in which hepatitis A to E has been excluded, to National Public Health Institutes.
Member States can share information about any such suspect cases in the ECDC EpiPulse platform to facilitate the investigation.
By this statement we, as ESPID board, strongly sympathize with our colleagues from the Ukraine. Children are among the primary victims of armed conflicts and we call on all parties to the conflict in Ukraine to protect our colleagues, children and their families from further violence.
We wholeheartedly hope that all will stay safe the coming time that is filled with fear and uncertainty.
We would like to reach out to the ESPID members from the Ukraine to see if we can offer help in any way. We would like to do whatever we can to support as much as possible in these extremely difficult times. A first request via pTBnet from Vera Chechenyeva (Kiev, Ukraine) to doctors from Poland, Romania, Moldova, Czech, Lithuanian, Latvia: could you, please, be so kind to send your contact data where our refugees can receive TB, ART or any pediatric help:
Country
City
Name of Institution
Address
Contact Name
Phone number (including country code please)
Email
support you can provide: TB Treatment, Antiretroviral Treatment, Common Pediatrician Help, Psychological, Social
Please send your contact data to the ESPID secretariat: admin@espid.org and this will be forwarded on and shared with pTBnet.
CHILDREN‘S DOCTORS AGAINST THE WAR: CALL FOR ACTION NOW
Brussels, March 10, 2022
Two weeks have passed since the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine. Despite 141 countries voting in the UN General Assembly for the Russian army to stop fighting and withdraw from another sovereign country, Ukraine, the fighting is increasingly bloody and brutal. The war has led to 2.5 million people including about 1 million children fleeing from their homes and becoming refugees. There are 79 children confirmed killed including 18 months old infant in Mariupol. Most of child fatalities result from attacks from the air or with rockets.
We stand together with Ukrainian children, families and the heroic medical and nursing staff calling for the action now:
– we ask the governments of our countries to do more to ensure the safety of children in Ukraine, to stop the war and first of all to stop rockets and bombs attacks on civil infrastructure of Ukraine; – we ask Russian paediatricians and especially leaders of paediatric organizations in Russia to express clear and loud position against the war in Ukraine and to do everything in their power to stop the war; – we confirm once again solidarity and professional support for children’s doctors and nurses in Ukraine.
Our voices are stronger than rockets and bombs! Slava Ukraine!
A webinar on post-COVID-19 condition in children jointly organised by the ECDC and the European Society of Paediatric Infectious Diseases (ESPID) took place on 10 November 2021.
The webinar enabled the sharing of experiences and epidemiological data on post-COVID-19 condition in children between researchers with the aim of shaping future priorities for the condition across Europe.
Participants included members of ESPID, ECDC’s national focal points for COVID-19, and representatives from EU/EEA countries’ National Immunisation Technical Advisory Groups (NITAGs). Presentations from ECDC, Germany, Italy, Finland, and the United Kingdom provided data in the areas of surveillance and epidemiology of post-COVID-19 condition in the paediatric population. The lack of a standardised syndrome definition and harmonised surveillance protocol were highlighted.
The webinar concluded that while challenges remain to identify the burden of post-COVID-19 condition and its consequences in children, some established networks exist. A collaborative approach involving public health specialists and expert groups is essential in responding to these public health challenges. The importance of developing a European network to assist in better understanding the syndrome, its public health consequences, and burden was endorsed. To watch the webinar click below:
Maria Tsolia, Co-chair of ESPID 2022, Invites You to Athens & Online
Maria Tsolia, Co-chair of ESPID 2022, invites you to join the 40th special anniversary ESPID Meeting where you will meet renowned speakers, the top researchers in paediatric infectious diseases, and colleagues from all around the world.
As a past participant, you know that ESPID provides world-class science and many educational opportunities, and we encourage you to join us again this year. Here is how you can take an active role in this exceptional learning experience:
Apply for the Walter Marget Educational Workshop – selected trainees will benefit from talks by experts and the opportunity to discuss their cases directly with the faculty
Present in the 14th ESPID Research Masterclass – young researchers can present their studies to other junior colleagues and discuss them closely with European research group leaders
Apply for the ESPID Travel Award – it will cover your registration, your travel expenses to Athens, and your hotel stay for the days of the meeting
Benefit from the Participation Award – recipients will be entitled to free registration to ESPID 2022
40th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Paediatric Infectious Diseases
Online, Local & Hosted from Athens, Greece
9-13th May 2022
You are invited to the 40th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Paediatric Infectious Diseases in Athens & Online, 9-13 May 2022. Join researchers and specialists from Europe and around the world, who are dedicated to researching, treating and preventing infectious diseases in children.
2022 will be a special year for the ESPID Meeting. Not only do we look forward to meeting again in person, but we will also be celebrating our 40th Meeting!
We look forward to welcoming you to Athens & Online!
ESPID is happy to invite you to the opening of the ESPID Research Café, where you will be presented with ongoing research proposals, and the possibility of communicating and sharing your input with the authors.
The first research proposal comes from Bieke Tack, MD, PhD candidate, under the topic of International recommendations on blood culture sampling methods in neonates. Find out everything about it here.
We hope you enjoy your break at the ESPID Research Café!
Group B Strep info translated into 14 NEW languages
“Group B Streptococcus (GBS) in pregnancy and newborn babies” leaflet has been translated from English into 14 languages. The leaflets are now available in:
We are delighted to announce the relaunching of the Wiser Immuniser course on the ESPID Education site. The modules of the course have been written by world-experts in the field of vaccinology.
The course now has been extensively reviewed and updated by ESPID and WHO experts. We like to take this opportunity to thank all authors who participated in the reviewing process.
The course is freely available at no cost to ESPID members. It is self-paced so you may start and finish at a time that is convenient to you.
We hope that this is a useful learning resource for you.
To access ESPID Education simply visit the site here. Not yet an ESPID member? click here
PIDS Foundation Announces the Revamped RFA for the Pichichero Family Foundation Research Award in Pediatric Infectious Diseases
Have you recently submitted an NIH or CDC award that just missed the payline? If so, the Pichichero Family Foundation Research Award in Pediatric Infectious Diseases may be a great way to build the additional data you need to launch a new area of investigation.
“Having been a grant-funded investigator for many years and serving on multiple study sections, I know firsthand how challenging the grant process is,” said Dr. Michael Pichichero, Director, Research Institute, Rochester General Hospital. The Pichichero Family Foundation seeks to stand in the gap that often exists between NIH paylines and good science that narrowly misses the mark by providing research grants to well deserving proposals. Beginning November 1, the PIDS Foundation will review repurposed NIH and CDC grants, with study section comments, on a rolling basis. Proposals that were reviewed favorably, but fell below the payline, will be eligible for funding. For more information, please review the Request for Proposalsor contact Christy Phillips at PIDS:pids@idsociety.org
New Partnership with European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID)
We are pleased to announce that the European Society of Paediatric Infectious Diseases (ESPID) and European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) have signed a memorandum of understanding for the future partnership of the two societies with the aim of fostering collaborative relationships to strengthen practice, education and advocacy for paediatric infectious diseases.
ESPID Podcast - Conversations on Paediatric Infectious Diseases
As part of our new 4-part podcast series, ESPID brings you leaders in paediatric infectious diseases, discussing their experiences, viewpoints and more.
The European Academy of Paediatrics invite you to share the resources they have put together during the pandemic, and to visit their Resource Centre. This includes a number of elements which youmayht find interesting and helpful:
·Links to the weekly webinars that we have run over the last 2 months addressing a range of practical, academic and psychological aspects of the crisis
·Daily blogs and updates with links to helpful sites and breaking news
·A ‘Children’s Corner’ with advice on activities and links to useful resources for families
