Pediatric News articles from January 2005

Pediatric News archives from January 2005

Some skin diseases not for adults only.(Clinical Rounds)
January 1, 2005... LAS VEGAS -- You may think of perioral dermatitis as an adult-only disease, but it affects children as well, Patricia M. Witman, M.D., said at a dermatology seminar sponsored by the Skin Disease Education Foundation. "When it's...

Pertussis boosters for adolescents look promising: replacement of Td booster may be in sight.(News)
January 1, 2005... WASHINGTON -- Positive data on two candidate reduced-antigen tetanus-diphtheria--acellular pertussis booster vaccines in adolescents were presented at the annual Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. ...

5-day cephalosporin beats penicillin for strep throat.(Infectious Diseases)
January 1, 2005... WASHINGTON -- A short-course regimen with a cephalosporin was more effective than a 10-day regimen with penicillin for curing strep throat, based on a metaanalysis of 14 studies done in adults and children. A short course regimen, which...

Sickle cell/stroke prevention trim halted.(News)(Stroke Prevention Trial in Sickle Cell Anemia II)
January 1, 2005... SAN DIEGO -- A multicenter trial of children with sickle cell anemia at high risk for stroke has been halted due to safety concerns. Launched in 2000, the randomized trial, sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and...

Peak age for toxic shock syndrome is 15 years.(News)
January 1, 2005... LA JOLLA, CALIF. -- An apparent rise in the number of cases of tampon-related toxic shock syndrome, especially in adolescents, warrants extra vigilance by physicians, who should report cases to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,...

Nebulizers best for inhaled steroids for asthma.(News)
January 1, 2005... BOSTON -- Nebulizers are better than nonnebulized devices for delivering inhaled corticosteroids to children with asthma, results of a study have shown. Although nebulizers are not more effective per se than nonnebulized devices such as a...

Crystal ball: top health policy issues of 2005.(News)
January 1, 2005... Improving access to health insurance and improving access to care itself top the health policy agenda for pediatricians this year. In a year where there's going to be obvious conflict on health care issues, "children can help Republicans...

Abnormal brain anatomy found with ADHD.(News)(attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder)
January 1, 2005... CHICAGO -- Children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder have anatomical brain abnormalities that can be seen with a novel technique called diffusion tensor imaging. "Our hope is, in the future, to be able to diagnose ADHD with...

Metabolites offer insight into autistic brain structure.(News)
January 1, 2005... IRVINE, CALIF. -- Children with autism and pervasive developmental disorder show abnormalities in brain structure and chemistry early in their clinical course, Seth Friedman, Ph.D., said at the annual conference of the EEG and Clinical...

Gay, lesbian youth are at increasing risk for suicidal ideation, action.(News)
January 1, 2005... ST. LOUIS -- North American teens who are gay, lesbian, or bisexual have a significantly increased risk of suicidal ideation or suicide attempts, according to a secondary analysis of eight large North American school surveys. The analysis,...

Schedules unchanged from mid-2004.(Infectious Diseases)
January 1, 2005... The U.S. Recommended Childhood and Adolescent Immunization Schedule for 2005 is unchanged from the one published in mid-2004, when the influenza vaccine was recommended for all 6- to 23-month-olds and for household contacts and out-of-home...

Congenital syphilis declined in 2000-2002.(Infectious Diseases)
January 1, 2005... The incidence of congenital syphilis declined 21% between 2000 and 2002, with the largest decreases occurring in the groups where the incidence had been highest--racial and ethnic minorities and women living in the South--the Centers for...

Downplay cancer risk with HPV infection-associated venereal warts.(Infectious Diseases)(Human papilloma virus)
January 1, 2005... YOSEMITE, CALIF. -- Patients with venereal warts should be reassured that the condition does not substantially increase their risk of developing cervical cancer, said Laura J. Grimshaw, assistant medical director of the STD Center for...

Looking ahead in infectious disease.(ID Consult)
January 1, 2005... Yogi Berra once said, "It's tough to make predictions, particularly about the future." With that said, here are my top predictions for pediatric infectious disease developments in 2005: * Changes in the U.S. vaccine development...

Repeat screening for LGTIs is wise in pregnant teens.(Infectious Diseases)(Lower genital tract infections)
January 1, 2005... SAN DIEGO -- Repeat screening for lower genital tract infections in pregnant adolescents is reasonable because of high recurrence and persistence rate of infections in this patient population, Andrea Ries Thurman, M.D., reported in a poster...

Online tool connects pediatricians, day care.(Infectious Diseases)
January 1, 2005... SAN FRANCISCO -- An online tool developed by pediatricians is helping day care workers promote immunizations and health screenings, Jerold M. Aronson, M.D., said at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Pediatrics. Children in day...

ACIP expands child eligibility for vaccines.(Infectious Diseases)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices passed a resolution to expand the groups of children recommended to receive influenza vaccine under the Vaccines for Children program this season. ...

FluMist found safe and effective.(Clinical Capsules)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... The live, attenuated, cold-adapted influenza vaccine, also known as CAIV-T (FluMist), was safe and effective in children aged 60 months to 17 years in the second year of its use for prevention of flu. The CAIV-T vaccine was first available for...

Teen with rabies recovering.(Clinical Capsules)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... A teenaged girl who contracted rabies from a bat and received an experimental treatment has been upgraded to fair condition at the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin (Wauwatosa), a hospital spokesperson said in an interview at press time. The...

Neonatal infections limit growth.(Clinical Capsules)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Extremely low-birth-weight infants (401-1,000 g) who developed neonatal infections were significantly more likely to have neurodevelopmental problems in early childhood, compared with noninfected infants in a cohort study of 6,093 children,...

11-valent vaccine shows promise.(Clinical Capsules)(11-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine )(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... A new 11-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (Pn-PD) was safe and effective in a randomized, single-blind study of 154 infants who received the vaccine at ages 2, 4, 6, and 12-15 months, reported Anu Nurkka of the National Public Health...

Antibiotic overprescribing remains a problem: more than half of physicians would give an antibiotic when the diagnosis was uncertain.(Infectious Diseases)
January 1, 2005... WASHINGTON -- Physicians understand that overuse of antibiotics is contributing to rising resistance rates, yet a large minority of physicians continue to prescribe antibiotics for viral illnesses, Mohmad G. Fakih, M.D., reported in a poster...

Reading problems resolve when ear infections resolve.(Infectious Diseases)
January 1, 2005... NEW YORK -- Reading performance will return to normal in children who have lagged behind because of hearing impairment associated with chronic middle ear infections, Avishay Golz, M.D., said at the annual meeting of the American Academy of...

Low-dose fluconazole may prevent invasive fungal infection in newborns.(Infectious Diseases)
January 1, 2005... SAN FRANCISCO -- Fluconazole prophylaxis twice weekly during the first 6 weeks of life is similar to the previously studied schedule of more frequent doses in preventing invasive fungal infection in high-risk preterm infants who weigh less than...

Bite type, infection risk should dictate treatment.(Infectious Diseases)
January 1, 2005... PARIS -- The risk of infection from bites varies considerably depending on the type of wound that is inflicted, and therefore careful assessment and treatment are required, according to wound experts speaking at a meeting of the World Union of...

Neuropsychiatric illness linked to type 2 diabetes.(Behavioral Pediatrics)(relationship between type 2 diabetes and neuropsychiatric illness in children)
January 1, 2005... ORLANDO, FLA. -- Nearly 20% of children and adolescents have a neuropsychiatric diagnosis at the time they are diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, according to a retrospective study presented at the annual scientific sessions of the American...

SSRIs not tied to suicide in Swedish children.(Behavioral Pediatrics)(Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... STOCKHOLM -- In Sweden, there is no evidence of an association between suicide and the use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors among children or adolescents; instead, these drugs appear to be associated with a decreased risk of suicide...

Prenatal factors tied to suicidal behavior in child.(Behavioral Pediatrics)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Certain prenatal and maternal factors may be associated with attempted or completed suicide in offspring, according to Ellenor Mittendorfer-Rutz and her colleagues at the Karolinska Institute, Stockholm. In a large cohort study involving...

Help for adopted infants' attachment issues.(Behavioral Pediatrics)
January 1, 2005... BERLIN -- A short-term video feedback intervention in early childhood can enhance parent-child relationships in adoptive families and minimize later child psychopathology associated with attachment problems, Femmie Juffer, Ph.D., said at the...

Strategies to cut back on children's television time.(Behavioral Pediatrics)
January 1, 2005... SAN FRANCISCO -- The epidemic of obesity among children is tightly correlated with the increasing time children spend watching television, but there are a number of effective strategies for reducing television time, William H. Dietz, M.D., said...

'Cutting' pain more than skin deep.(Behavioral Consult)
January 1, 2005... Self-injurious behavior in the form of "cutting" mystifies many pediatricians even as it alarms them. Why would teenagers cut themselves over and over? Why do some hide their wounds and scars while others seem to display and "use" their wounds?...

Mandibular distraction.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
January 1, 2005... I read with interest Dr. William G. Wilkoff's column, "The Sound of Silence," about his new patient with Pierre Robin syndrome and a tracheostomy (Letters From Maine, August, 2004, p. 16). My second son, now 4 years old, also was born with...

Home remedies for asthma?(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
January 1, 2005... Recently a patient told me that his mother treats his asthma with "tree tea." As a reader of Dr. Lillian M. Beard's column, Beyond Chicken Soup, I was wondering what Dr. Beard could tell me about this. Is it safe? Judith Jaffe, M.D. ...

Are we ready for EHRs?(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
January 1, 2005... Electronic health record systems are promoted seemingly more for the sake of acquiring and using the technology than for specific benefits that cannot be gained in some other way ("Tactics Aim to Gain Widespread EHR Adoption," August, 2004, p....

Clarification.(Opinion)(Correction Notice)
January 1, 2005... A story in the May 2004 issue ("Holism Finds Niche in Life-Threatening Illness Treatment," p. 40) indicated that hospice care has not been accessible to seriously ill children, as opposed to children who are terminally ill. While that has been...

Location, location, location.(Letters From Maine)
January 1, 2005... As the garage door creaked up over my head, the rain promised for the afternoon began falling on the driveway in large heavy plops a good 5 hours ahead of schedule. I muttered my favorite expletive and walked my old red bicycle back to her...

FDA imposes new isotretinoin restrictions.(Clinical Rounds)
January 1, 2005... The Food and Drug Administration will scrap isotretinoin's handful of voluntary risk management programs in favor of one mandatory, more restrictive system like that used for thalidomide. The new program is expected to go into effect in...

Pain relievers.(Clinical Rounds)
January 1, 2005... "Like pathogens to antibiotics, your son's becoming resistant to discipline." [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Levetiracetam reduces refractory partial seizures.(Clinical Rounds)
January 1, 2005... NEW ORLEANS -- Levetiracetam appears to be an effective add-on therapy for refractory partial seizures in children, researchers said at the annual meeting of the American Epilepsy Society. And because of its low incidence of cognitive side...

Sterile abscess confused Dx of systemic JIA: do a very thorough work-up and keep an open mind in patients with fever of unknown origin.(Clinical Rounds)
January 1, 2005... SAN FRANCISCO -- A child with fever of unexplained origin and an abscess in the right thigh ultimately was diagnosed with systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis after tests showed the abscess was sterile, Sara Fitzpatrick said in a poster...

Most torsional deformities and flat feet require no Tx.(Clinical Rounds)
January 1, 2005... LAS VEGAS -- The vast majority of infants and children who present with flat feet or a toe-in or toe-out appearance to their gait need no treatment at all, Michael J. Goldberg, M.D., declared at a meeting sponsored by the American Academy of...

Teething/toothache.(Beyond Chicken Soup)
January 1, 2005... Once new parents adjust to their baby's eating, elimination, and sleeping patterns, they next worry about when teeth will appear. Usually their eyes widen with amazement when I explain that all the primary (baby) teeth are formed during...

Not all breath-enhanced nebulizers created equal.(Clinical Rounds)
January 1, 2005... MIAMI -- A head-to-head comparison of three breath-enhanced nebulizers found that each excelled at either delivering the agent to the lung, dosing precisely, or limiting the amount of drug that escapes into a room during typical use. ...

Atrovent HFA Inhalation Aerosol, Evoclin Foam.(New & Approved)
January 1, 2005... Atrovent HFA Inhalation Aerosol (ipratropium bromide HFA, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals) The Food and Drug Administration approved ipratropium bromide HFA (Atrovent HFA Inhalation Aerosol), a bronchodilator for maintenance...

Detrol LA safe for detrusor overactivity Tx.(Clinical Rounds)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... SAN FRANCISCO -- The extended-release formulation of tolterodine has proved to be safe in two large placebo-controlled trials in children with detrusor overactivity, Pamela Ellsworth, M.D., reported in a poster presentation at the annual...

Topical steroids clear postcircumcision scar formation.(Clinical Rounds)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... SAN FRANCISCO -- The majority of postcircumcision trapped penises were freed by 3 weeks of topical betamethasone applications, averting an extensive surgical repair in a pilot study of 14 infants, Lane S. Palmer, M.D., reported. Parents...

VCUGs every 2-3 years for reflux follow-up, not yearly.(Clinical Rounds)(Voiding cystourethrograms)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... SAN FRANCISCO -- Following children with vesicoureteral reflux with voiding cystourethrograms every 2-3 years instead of annually could lower costs with only a modest increase in the amount of time they spend on prophylactic antibiotics until...

Broadening friendships beyond medicine.(The Rest of Your Life)
January 1, 2005... Michael Myers, M.D., often hears physicians say they'd like to expand their circle of friends beyond their colleagues in medicine, but they're not sure how to go about it. "I hear so many first-person accounts from physicians who say it's...

Influenza update.(Policy & Practice)(influenza vaccination rate)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Federal health officials are applauding the progress made in the first year of vaccinating children between the ages of 6 months and 23 months. As of mid-December, nearly 37% of children in that age group had received the vaccine, according to...

Teens delaying sexual activity.(Policy & Practice)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Sexual activity among younger teenagers declined significantly between 1995 and 2002, while use of contraception increased, according to a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Among never-married teenage girls aged 15-17...

Abstinence education evaluated.(Policy & Practice)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Federally funded abstinence-only education programs contain errors and misinformation on the effectiveness of condoms, the risks of abortion, and the transmission of disease, according to a recent report from Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.). The...

FDA issues warning for ADHD drug.(Practice Trends)(Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... The Food and Drug Administration has issued a new warning for atomoxetine HCl concerning the potential for severe liver injury. The drug, indicated for the treatment of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in adults and children, has...

Fewer children are smoking.(Policy & Practice)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Smoking among preteens is down--but the majority of children who do smoke are getting cigarettes from people they know, a national survey indicated, according to a research presented in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine (Am. J. Prev...

AMA tackles children's issues.(Policy & Practice)(American Medical Association)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... The American Medical Association approved several measures at its 2004 interim meeting to protect the health and welfare of children. Among the measures were one to en courage the development of a strong adolescent immunization program in...

Medicaid prescription drug charges.(Policy & Practice)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... The Medicaid program is being overcharged for prescription drugs, George M. Reeb testified to the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on oversight and investigations. Mr. Reeb, assistant inspector general for the Centers for Medicare and...