Leading the field
Texas Children's Infectious Diseases Center is home to recognized authorities in several distinct areas of disease, including:

• Cytomegalovirus (CMV)
• Herpes simplex
• Infectious endocarditis
• Influenza
• Neonatal infections - bacterial, fungal and congenital
• Pertussis
• Group B Streptococcus
• Streptococcus pneumoniae
• Staphylococcus aureus
• Tuberculosis

Our team of expert physicians has published a substantial body of work, including more than 700 peer-reviewed original research papers and two of the most widely used textbooks: the Textbook of Pediatric Infectious Diseases and Current Therapy in Pediatric Infectious Diseases. Additionally, several hold or have held leadership positions in national pediatric and infectious disease associations.

A culture of caring
Parents come to us frightened and worried – many times not knowing what type of infection is afflicting their child. At Texas Children’s, our team offers compassionate care in a setting created especially for children. We provide expert diagnosis and management of infectious disease in children, including both inpatient and outpatient evaluation and care.

Each month, the team at Texas Children’s Infectious Diseases Center consults on some 150 inpatient cases, including:

• Fevers of unknown origin
• Heart-related Kawasaki Disease, endocarditis
• Lymphadenitis
• Post-operative and hospital-acquired infections
• Serious infections - bone and joint; pneumonia (bacterial, TB, viral); central nervous system (meningitis, encephalitis); skin and soft tissue (necrotizing fasciitis); septic shock
• Travel-related illness such as typhoid fever, malaria

Texas Children’s also specializes in the treatment of immuno-compromised children, including such challenging illnesses as:

• Catheter-related bacteremia
• Infections related to transplants and malignancies
• Infections related to technology-mechanical ventilation, prosthetic materials
• Shunt infections, hydrocephalus
• Problems in newborns including fungal infections, meningitis, severe viral infections, enterovirus and congenital infections

Exploring new frontiers
Research offers the best hope for new solutions to infectious diseases. The top tier program at Texas Children’s Infectious Diseases Center has attracted major funding from several national sources, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health. Major groundbreaking studies include:

• Antibiotic resistance in pediatric pathogens
• Cardiac depression in gram positive sepsis; innate immunity in inflammation
• Community-acquired MRSA
• Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infections
• Effect of infectious diseases on the heart
• Epidemiology and prevention of group B streptococcal infections
• Host defense mechanisms
• Immunizations, public health policy
• Infant respiratory diseases and prevention through immunization
• Tuberculosis treatment and control

Targeting excellence
Through collaboration and a steadfast devotion to research and study, the physician-scientists at the Infectious Diseases Center have made critical contributions to their fields. Their work has furthered:

• A greater understanding of pathogenesis and neurological sequelae of bacterial meningitis.
• The establishment of pharmacokinetics, efficacy and safety of multiple antibiotics.
• The knowledge that the administration of ampicillin to women in labor penetrates amniotic fluid
• The protective antibody level for GBS and the immunogenicity and safety of a conjugate vaccine for pregnant women.
• The establishment of directly observed therapy as the standard for TB treatment.
• The development of prognostic measures for neurologic sequelae including hearing loss as a result of congenital or perinatal CMV infection.