Paediatrics (RCH) - Theses
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ItemEnd-organ consequences of the Fontan circulation( 2022)The Fontan procedure is the last in a series of staged surgical procedures offered to children born with complex congenital heart disease in whom a two-ventricle repair is not feasible. Since its first description, the Fontan procedure has undergone a number of technical modifications which have further improved survival and reduced associated morbidity. Due to improved survival, the number of people living with a Fontan circulation is growing, and the average age is increasing. However, with more patients surviving into adulthood we are unfortunately seeing that many will develop complications. Ventricular dysfunction, circulatory failure, atrioventricular valve (AVV) regurgitation, cardiac arrhythmias, protein-losing enteropathy, plastic bronchitis and thromboembolic phenomena have all been increasingly recognized as potential complications after the Fontan operation. Hepatic fibrosis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma have also been described, as well as renal dysfunction in the form of reduced glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and microalbuminuria. The aim of this thesis was to (i) characterize the prevalence and severity of hepatic and renal complications in patients with a Fontan circulation, (ii) identify potential risk factors that may contribute to the development of hepatic and renal complications after the Fontan procedure, and (iii) inform screening practices for end-organ complications in these patients. In this thesis I have demonstrated that: (i) the majority of patients with a Fontan circulation have non-invasive evidence of liver fibrosis by early adulthood, (ii) a smaller but significant proportion of patients will be diagnosed with liver cirrhosis by early adulthood, (iii) a minority of patients will develop hepatocellular carcinoma, which may occur in adolescence or early adulthood, (iv) history of cardiac arrhythmia or AVV failure is associated with an increased risk of advanced liver disease, (v) mild renal dysfunction is common in patients with a Fontan circulation, however, does not appear to negatively impact mid-term outcomes, (vi) creatinine based estimated GFR should be interpreted with caution in children with a Fontan circulation, and tends to over-estimate true or measured GFR in children and adults with a Fontan circulation, (vii) many of the patients who were found to have hepatic or renal dysfunction were identified on routine screening. This thesis has drawn attention to the significant proportion of patients with a Fontan circulation who will develop hepatic or renal dysfunction during long-term follow-up. These findings encourage us to consider the implications of end-organ dysfunction on the medical management of a population that is growing in numbers and age. This work emphasizes the importance of routine surveillance in identifying those with significant liver and kidney dysfunction after the Fontan procedure, and identifies a number of potentially modifiable risk factors for more advanced disease. In the absence of any proven pharmacological treatment for these complications, it is likely that optimisation of the Fontan circulation itself in combination with the avoidance of secondary end-organ insults will be the key to minimising the burden of hepatic and renal disease in this population.
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ItemThe epidemiology and risk factors of anaphylaxis and food-induced anaphylaxis worldwide( 2019)Anaphylaxis is a severe allergic reaction that is rapid in onset and may cause death. There are increasing reports from individual countries and regions on anaphylaxis prevalence or incidence; however, there has been no systematic summary of the worldwide evidence among the paediatric population. An increasing rate of hospital admissions for food-induced anaphylaxis was observed in Australia from 1993 to 2012, especially among young children. Although rising rates of anaphylaxis have also been reported in other western countries, little is known about the time trends in Asian regions. Time trends of adrenaline auto-injectors (AAI) prescription is a good supplement surrogate for the time trends of anaphylaxis risk in the community. Some studies reported time trends of AAI prescription internationally, such as USA, UK and Canada; however, there is little information on the time trends of AAI prescription or dispensing in Australia in recent years. Previous international studies have reported that ethnicity is associated with the risk of anaphylaxis. Food allergy was found to be more common in children born in Australia with Asian parents than children born in Australia with Caucasian parents. However, it is not known whether ethnicity is also a risk factor for the development of anaphylaxis and food-induced anaphylaxis in Australia. Food allergy is an important cause of anaphylaxis. People with food allergy have a high risk of anaphylaxis, but not all of them will have an anaphylactic reaction. It is hence crucial to know the risk factors of having anaphylactic reactions in the food allergic population. Few studies have examined risk factors for food-induced anaphylaxis in food-allergic children. The characteristics of children with food allergy who are more likely to experience anaphylaxis are unknown. Therefore, this thesis aims to describe the worldwide incidence and prevalence of anaphylaxis and identify risk factors for anaphylaxis and food-induced anaphylaxis in both the general population and the food-allergic population. Firstly, I conducted a systematic review to describe the incidence and prevalence of anaphylaxis in children worldwide. I found a high heterogeneity between studies which limited the interpretation of an overall combined incidence and prevalence. I found increasing time trends of all-cause anaphylaxis and food-induced anaphylaxis in children from included studies and studies in developing areas were underrepresented. By using hospital admission data for anaphylaxis from the Hospital Authority of Hong Kong, I reported increasing time trends of both all-cause anaphylaxis and food-induced anaphylaxis in the paediatric population in Hong Kong between 2001 and 2015. By analysing AAI dispensing data from the Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) database, I found an increasing incidence rate of patients with AAI in Australia from 2005 to 2014. Different trends were reported by sex, age and state. I found a shift towards more AAI prescriptions being provided by general practitioners (GPs) rather than specialists in most regions in Australia. By using the data from the School Entrant Health Questionnaire in Victoria, Australia, I investigated the risk factors of anaphylaxis in the general population. I found an association between Asian ethnicity and anaphylaxis risk in children living in Australia and identified the high-risk group (Australian-born children with Asian-born mothers) for anaphylaxis. Lastly, I used data from the HealthNuts study to explore the frequency and risk factors of anaphylaxis in food allergic children from a community setting. I found a high frequency of experiencing anaphylactic reactions (11.5%) in the preceding 12 months in children with food allergy. In summary, the results presented in this thesis have provided further knowledge on the epidemiology of anaphylaxis and food-induced anaphylaxis in the general population and identified important predictors of anaphylaxis in the general population and the food allergic population. The identification of these essential predictors has important implications for the management of anaphylaxis and will improve our understanding of the development of anaphylaxis.