University of Calgary doctor shines light on severe E. coli infections in children
CBC
A University of Calgary doctor is working to raise awareness about shiga toxin-producing E. coli and delve into the long-term implications for children.
Dr. Stephen Freedman has been studying this type of E. coli for years and was on the front lines treating children in the recent daycare-related outbreak in the city.
When the magnitude of that outbreak became clear, he recognized that while it was tragic, it could help unravel some of the mysteries around this infection, known as STEC.
"We realized this does present an opportunity to learn a lot about the long-term impacts of shiga toxin-producing E. coli," said Freedman, a professor of pediatrics and emergency medicine in the University of Calgary's Cumming School of Medicine.
Previous research has focused on children who experience severe complications, including kidney failure, according to Freedman, who hopes to learn more about the implications for kids who experience mild infections
"It'll actually put into perspective the risk associated with this bacteria," he said.
Freedman is one year into a four-year study involving 1,000 children at 26 sites in Canada and the United States looking at the best use of IV fluids to treat STEC in children. He has received additional funding from the U.S. National Institutes of Health.
He hopes to follow 500 kids exposed during the Calgary outbreak (including those who tested positive and those who did not) for over two years.
The children will be monitored — at six months, 12 months and two years post-infection — for health impacts ranging from kidney and intestinal problems to early diabetes and high blood pressure.
"If we find that even children with mild infections are having complications down the road, it actually raises the bar of the severity of this infection for all children and really will allow us to treat all children similarly and also increase the importance of preventing any infections in the first place."
Freedman is also the lead author of a review article on STEC published recently in the New England Journal of Medicine. The project was in the works for over two years.
"It's an uncommon disease, and so many people will go their entire career with never seeing a single case," said Freedman.
Even those who have encountered a case or two may not be aware of all the research, he noted.
"They're not going to know how to interpret the result of a stool test. They won't know how to manage it. They won't be aware of the potential complications," he said.
A Calgary dentist who defrauded five insurance companies over a decade should spend up to three years in prison, the prosecution argued Friday.
B.C. Conservation Officer Service says it has called off its search for a bear responsible for an attack on a group of school children in Bella Coola, B.C. on Nov. 20.
The union president called it a rally for solidarity as Iqaluit Housing Authority employees gathered Friday while negotiations are ongoing between the Nunavut Employees Union and the employer.
The federal government is stoking Quebec separatism by walking back its climate commitments — including in its recent deal with Alberta — Liberal MP and former cabinet minister Steven Guilbeault says.
Four more Alberta MLAs are facing recall petitions organized by their constituents, including the first NDP representative to be caught in the province's ongoing wave of recall efforts.
Frank Gehry, the Canadian-born renegade architect behind some of the world's most recognizable buildings, has died at 96.
Hundreds of P.E.I. parents can't find child-care spaces, especially for infants. The provincial government says expanding those spots remains a top priority — and it recognizes the concern.
An Alberta judge says a referendum proposal on Alberta separating from Canada goes against Charter and and Treaty rights, in a decision given less than 24 hours after the provincial government introduced legislation that would have ended the court proceeding.
The architect of Alberta's politician recall legislation says it was never meant to be used as a political weapon, but as an "ultimate tool of accountability" if a politician engages in illegal or unethical behaviour.
The Government of Saskatchewan has introduced its long-promised involuntary treatment legislation on the final day of the fall sitting.
The Law Society of Ontario has suspended the licence of Deepak Paradkar, one of seven Canadians arrested in connection with alleged drug lord Ryan Wedding’s cocaine smuggling ring.
London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) is getting rid of unlimited mental health benefits for staff, blaming ballooning costs and former administrators for implementing it without proper due diligence or oversight.
Netflix has agreed to buy Warner Bros. Discovery's TV and film studios and streaming division for $72 billion US, a deal that would hand control of one of Hollywood's most prized and oldest assets to the streaming pioneer that has upended the media industry.