Hot Topics 2008!

I am at the Hot Topics congress. Despite my severe jet-lag... it's a great congress, on clinically relevant aspects of neonatal care. If you have the opportunity... come here next year!

For example; hypothermia - it's here to stay, I am sure. And, I must admit I have been a sceptic, but taking the TOBY trial together with the older trials... it's no doubt of the improved outcome in terms of increased survival, free of disability. Still, many of treated infants will have to live with sequels of perinatal asphyxia. The numbers-needed-to-treat seems to be in the range of 5-10, i.e. for every 5-10 treated infants, there will be one without disability. Whether this is good enough or not may be up to debate, I would say it is good enough!

The best lecture today was about a commonly used therapy; buffering with bicarbonate. Take-home message - bicarbonate is a completely useless therapy. Do not use it!

And read the recent article by Judy Aschner and Ronald Poland, in Pediatrics 2008;122:831-5.

Best wishes from Washington DC!