Pediatric News articles from December 2007

Pediatric News archives from December 2007

Metrics: road map to medical home?(News)
December 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] WASHINGTON -- Medical home advocates hope a new set of metrics will help primary care physicians more closer to implementing this model of care. The metrics assess how patient centered an office-based practice is...

Top 10 reasons for pediatric visits in 2007.(VITAL SIGNS)
December 1, 2007... Top 10 Reasons for Pediatric Visits in 2007 Routine child health exam 22.9% Otitis media * 6.6% Acute upper respiratory infection * 4.6% Acute pharyngitis ...

CFC-free inhalers may add $1.5b to asthma care costs: patented formulations will replace generics.(News)
December 1, 2007... SAN FRANCISCO -- The phaseout of inhalers that use chlorofluorocarbons to deliver medication for asthma of lung disease will cost patients more because newer inhalers use patented instead of generic formulations, according to experts. The...

Pediatrics seeking ways to refine pay for performance.(News)
December 1, 2007... SAN FRANCISCO -- Current pay-for-performance schemes probably reward only those physicians who need no incentive and demoralize those who could improve, said a representative of the American Academy of Pediatrics and a representative of the...

Good diet aids control in type 1.(News)(Clinical report)
December 1, 2007... Children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes who adhere closely to a recommended diet without skipping meals are more likely to attain optimal blood glucose control, according to the results of a prospective, population-based study. "Few...

Oseltamivir, zanamivir label changes likely.(News)
December 1, 2007... GAITHERSBURG, MD. -- Prompted by concerns about an association between antiviral drugs and neuropsychiatric events in patients with influenza, a closely divided Food and Drug Administration advisory panel has voted to recommend revised labeling...

AAP issues statement on practicing professionalism.(News)
December 1, 2007... The practice of pediatrics is different enough from the practice of other specialties--because many people can be involved in each case--that it needs its own articulation of principles, the American Academy of Pediatrics said in a recent...

AAP updates policy on adolescent contraception.(News)
December 1, 2007... The revised American Academy of Pediatrics policy statement on contraception and adolescents includes updates on recently introduced contraceptives, as well as an emphasis on the Academy's recommendation that adolescents postpone sexual...

Flu vaccine coverage among high-risk adolescents poor.(News)(Clinical report)
December 1, 2007... SAN DIEGO -- The number of adolescents with asthma and other high-risk conditions who received the influenza vaccine increased between 1992 and 2002, but the coverage remains poor at about 15% overall, results from a large health maintenance...

Two doses of PCV7 can't do the work of three.(Infectious Diseases)
December 1, 2007... CHICAGO -- Trimming the seven-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine schedule from three prebooster doses to two may leave children more vulnerable to infection, according to data presented at the annual Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial...

19A serotype dominant among infection isolates.(Infectious Diseases)
December 1, 2007... SAN DIEGO -- Serotype 19A is the most common serotype isolated from children's invasive pneumococcal infections, results from a national multicenter study suggest. The finding comes from the United States Pediatric Multicenter Pneumococcal...

Serotype 19A disease doesn't outweigh PCV7 benefit.(ID Consult)
December 1, 2007... The emergence of pneumococcal "replacement" serotype 19A should not lead us to view the seven-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in anything other than an overwhelmingly positive light. Since the introduction of PCV7 (Prevnar) in the...

Campylobacter incidence drops, yet is high in young children.(Infectious Diseases)
December 1, 2007... SAN DIEGO -- Cases of Campylobacter infections in the United States declined by an average of 30% between 1996 and 2006, according to an epidemiologist from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. However, the incidence remains...

Features differ in sinogenic intracranial infections.(Infectious Diseases)
December 1, 2007... SAN DIEGO -- Children with intracranial complications of sinusitis are significantly older, and have longer hospitalizations and more neurologic sequelae, compared with children who have intraorbital complications of sinusitis, Dr. Veronica K....

Survey: RotaTeq use varies per years in practice.(Infectious Diseases)
December 1, 2007... SAN DIEGO -- Pediatric clinicians who have been in practice for less than 10 years were more likely to recommend the RotaTeq vaccine for routine childhood immunization compared with their counterparts who have been in practice for more than 10...

Today's multicultural pediatrics.(Behavioral Consult)
December 1, 2007... I remember turning down a job in Canada at the beginning of my career because I was worried that my French wasn't good enough to address complex and sensitive psychosocial issues if I were to practice there. How things have changed! Some...

Practice hosts after-hours mental health providers.(Behavioral Pediatrics)
December 1, 2007... SAN FRANCISCO -- When pediatricians head home at the end of the day in one New York primary care practice, mental health providers reopen the doors to children and families who need their help. Offering the after-hours office space to...

Obese adolescents highly depressed, report finds.(Behavioral Pediatrics)
December 1, 2007... SALT LAKE CITY -- Being obese as an adolescent exacts a devastating psychological toll, perhaps an even greater toll than previously appreciated, suggest the results of psychiatric testing in 27 patients who were candidates for bariatric...

ADHD underdiagnosed in N.Y. Chinese immigrants.(Behavioral Pediatrics)
December 1, 2007... SAN FRANCISCO -- A very low prevalence of childhood attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in New York's Chinatown seems to be due to underdiagnosis of the disorder, Dr. Loretta Au said at a poster presentation at the annual meeting of the...

Only half of U.S. parents read to their kids daily: the practice varies by geographic region, household education and income levels, and race/ethnicity.(Behavioral Pediatrics)
December 1, 2007... Only 48% of parents in the United States read aloud to their children through the age of 5 years each day, according to the authors of a special new report commissioned by the nonprofit Reach Out and Read National Center in Boston. On a...

Do kids crave caffeine? Let's ask them.(Adviser's Viewpoint)
December 1, 2007... Over time, we seem to have acquired a greater need for round-the-clock energy, and children and adolescents feel this need, too. Caffeine, the most popular mood-altering substance in the world, fuels our desire for perpetual energy. What...

Like dancing bears.(Letters From Maine)
December 1, 2007... I had just finished a full morning of seeing patients with a third-year medical student who was beginning his second clinical rotation. His half day with me was billed as an "Introduction to Outpatient Community Pediatrics." And, I thought I...

Some vulvovaginal ills nearly unique to children.(Clinical Rounds)
December 1, 2007... SAN FRANCISCO -- Girls may present with vulvovaginal skin problems that are seldom or never seen in women, Dr. Libby Edwards said at a meeting sponsored by Skin Disease Education Foundation. Vulvovaginal aphthae, pseudowarts, and infantile...

Reassure parents about vulvovaginal disease.(Clinical Rounds)
December 1, 2007... SAN FRANCISCO -- Spend plenty of time addressing parents' concerns about a child's vulvovaginal disease or their worries may contribute to the problem, Dr. Libby Edwards said at a meeting sponsored by Skin Disease Education Foundation. ...

Feeding disorders are often misunderstood.(Special Needs: Realizing Potential)
December 1, 2007... Mealtimes bring families and friends together, but they also can be a source of tremendous frustration and concern when a child has a feeding disorder. A pediatric feeding disorder is diagnosed when a child fails to consume adequate nutrition...

Most hemangioma growth occurs in first 3 months of age.(Clinical Rounds)
December 1, 2007... SAN FRANCISCO -- Watch like a hawk for hemangiomas in the first few weeks and months of life, relax a bit after 6 months, and worry much less after 1 year, Dr. Ilona J. Frieden said at a meeting sponsored by Skin Disease Education Foundation....

Finding the right contraceptive for teen girls.(Clinical Rounds)
December 1, 2007... The key to finding the right birth control option for a teenage girl is to present her with all of her options and work with her to match her preferences with the right contraceptive, said Dr. Michelle Fox, director of family planning at the...

Every contraceptive option has pros and cons.(Clinical Rounds)
December 1, 2007... Dr. Michelle Fox, director of family planning at the University of Maryland, Baltimore, shared her thoughts on types of contraception and what to consider when prescribing to teenage girls. Implants Implanon (etonogestrel implant, 68...

Onset, sounds help pinpoint cause of stridor: pay careful attention to the details when parents describe how the illness developed, an expert urges.(Clinical Rounds)
December 1, 2007... STANFORD, CALIF. -- Be a good listener to distinguish the cause of stridor in children, Dr. Anna H. Messner stressed at a recent pediatric update sponsored by Stanford University. Tuning in to the pattern and the tone of a child's noisy...

Prevalence of tooth decay decreasing in permanent teeth of youth.(DATA WATCH)(Table)(Brief article)
December 1, 2007... Prevalence of Tooth Decay Decreasing In Permanent Teeth of Youth Age (in years) 1988-1994 1999-2004 6-8 14% 10% 9-11 36% 31% 12-15 57% 51% 16-19 78% ...

Iron-deficiency risk higher in overweight tots.(Clinical Rounds)
December 1, 2007... The risk of iron deficiency in children aged 1-3 years is highest among those with the independent risk factors of overweight or not attending day care or preschool, according to a study of 960 children in the fourth National Health and...

Congress eyes CPSC overhaul.(Policy & Practice)
December 1, 2007... Safety concerns about imported Chinese toys have prompted the House and a Senate committee to approve legislation to overhaul the nation's consumer product safety system. The House-passed bill would increase annual funding for the Consumer...

'Healthy steps' benefits said to last.(Policy & Practice)
December 1, 2007... Healthy Steps for Young Children, a practice-based intervention that aims to enhance relationships among parents, children, and pediatric practices, showed sustained benefits for children more than 2 years after participation in the program...

More Katrina mental health sequelae.(Policy & Practice)
December 1, 2007... Schools in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas that received an estimated 196,000 students displaced by Katrina have not been able to meet students' ongoing mental health needs, according to a RAND Corp. survey. The researchers...

Dental health in Hispanic youth.(Policy & Practice)
December 1, 2007... Hispanic youth report better dental health habits than their non-Hispanic peers, according to a new study of low-income New York City adolescents. The study, which appeared in the November Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved,...

Hopkins posts autism-genetics data.(Policy & Practice)
December 1, 2007... Researchers at Johns Hopkins University's McKusick-Nathans Institute of Genetic Medicine have released genetic data they hope will help speed autism research. The data, coordinated with a similar data release from the Autism Consortium, aims to...

Lawsuit filed on Medicaid drugs.(Policy & Practice)
December 1, 2007... The National Association of Chain Drug Stores and the National Community Pharmacists Association filed a federal lawsuit last month seeking to block Medicaid pharmacy reimbursement reductions scheduled to be implemented in January 2008. The two...

The constant challenge of CME.(On the Learning Curve)(continuing medical education)
December 1, 2007... As if the life of a young physician ere not busy enough, we all face the challenges of obtaining and documenting continuing medical education throughout our careers. While time for structured learning is carved out for you during residency and...

Bringing health policy issues to the bedside.(Health Policy: The Fine Line)
December 1, 2007... Every morning, as a hospitalist at an academic pediatric hospital, I do rounds with a talented complement of team members. I listen to an intern present the case and stay quiet as a senior resident edits and summarizes. We are fortunate to have...

Costs for diabetic ketoacidosis up 40% in decade.(Practice Trends)
December 1, 2007... AMSTERDAM -- Direct medical costs for diabetic ketoacidosis in children and adolescents in the United States totaled approximately $258 million in 2006, Dr. Arleta Rewers and Dr. Marian Rewers reported in a poster at the annual meeting of the...

Tricks of the trade, part 2.(Efficient Pediatrician Practices)
December 1, 2007... Last month we covered some rather basic tricks; I will continue with a few more techniques that do not require special gadgetry, and then I will go into the "nontraditional" items that may make for a fun and exciting visit. These are some items...