From ROC curve analysis, we demonstrated the significance of the suPAR level in predicting SRNS with a high specificity but low sensitivity. However, the clinical value of suPAR to predict steroid resistance and guide therapy remains to be investigated further.

BackgroundSince the outbreak of COVID-19, a series of preventive and control measures in China have been used to effectively curb the spread of COVID-19. This study aimed to analyze the epidemiological characteristics of Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP) and Chlamydia pneumoniae (CP) in hospitalized children with acute respiratory tract infection during the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsMP IgM antibody and CP IgM antibody were detected in all hospitalized children due to acute respiratory tract infection in the Children’s Hospital Affiliated to Zhejiang University from January 2019 to December 2020. These data were compared between 2019 and 2020 based on age and month.ResultsThe overall detection rate of MP and CP in 2020 was significantly lower than that in 2019 (MP: 21.5% vs 32.9%, P<0.001; CP: 0.3% vs 0.9%, P<0.001). This study found a 4-fold reduction in the number of children positive for MP and a 7.5-fold reduction in the number of children positive for CP from 2019 to 2020. The positive cases were concentrated in children aged >1 year old. In 2019, the positive rate of MP was detected more commonly in children 3 years of age or older than in younger children. In 2020, the higher positive rate of MP reached a peak in the 3- to 6-year age group (35.3%). CP was detected predominantly in children aged 6 years older in 2019 and 2020, with positive rates of 4.8% and 2.6%, respectively. Meanwhile, the positive rates of MP in 2019 were detected more commonly in July, August and September, with 47.2%, 46.7% and 46.3%, respectively. Nevertheless, the positive rates of MP from February to December 2020 apparently decreased compared to those in 2019. The positive rates of CP were evenly distributed throughout the year, with 0.5%-1.6% in 2019 and 0.0%-2.1% in 2020.ConclusionsA series of preventive and control measures for SARS-CoV-2 during the COVID-19 pandemic can not only contain the spread of SARS-CoV-2 but also sharply improve the infection of other atypical pathogens, including MP and CP.

IgG4-related systemic disease (IgG4-RSD) is an autoimmune disease that includes a wide variety of lesions. IgG4-RSD is characterized by high levels of serum IgG4, abundant levels of IgG4-positive plasma cells and T-lymphocyte infiltration in various organs. Tubulointerstitial nephritis (TIN) is a major finding when the kidneys are involved and is effectively treated with corticosteroid therapy. We herein describe two cases of IgG4-related TIN. Such cases have rarely been reported in China.

The aims of this study were to investigate the activation of T lymphocytes in peripheral blood from children with Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL) and explore their roles for prognosis in HL. A cohort of 52 newly diagnosed children with HL during the past 10 years was enrolled for analysis in this study. Peripheral blood samples of the patients were acquired before treatment in our hospital, and T-cell subsets were detected by a four-color flow cytometer. CD4+ T cells and CD4+/CD8+ T-cell ratio decreased significantly in patients with HL vs. healthy controls. CD8+ T cells, CD3+CD4+HLA-DR+ T cells, and CD3+CD8+HLA-DR+ T cells increased markedly in patients with HL vs. healthy controls. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis showed that CD3+CD4+HLA-DR+ T cells and CD3+CD8+HLA-DR+ T cells each distinguished the high-risk group from the low- and intermediate-risk group. The area under the ROC curve for predicting high-risk patients was 0.795 for CD3+CD4+HLA-DR+ T cell and 0.784 for CD3+CD8+HLA-DR+ T cell. A comparison of peripheral blood T-cell subsets that responded differently to therapy showed significantly higher percentages of CD3+CD4+HLA-DR+ T cells and CD3+CD8+HLA-DR+ T cells in patients who achieved complete remission compared to those who did not achieve complete remission. In addition, high percentages of both CD3+CD4+HLA-DR+ T cells and CD3+CD8+HLA-DR+ T cells were associated with inferior event-free survival. Peripheral immune status may be related to disease severity in HL. CD3+CD4+HLA-DR+ T cells and CD3+CD8+HLA-DR+ T cells may be a novel indicator for risk stratification of HL and may be an independent risk factor for inferior outcome in childhood HL.