Pediatric News articles from May 2008

Pediatric News archives from May 2008

How one city is tackling obesity.(News)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "Doctors alone can't solve kids' weight problems," stated Dr. Victoria McEvoy, calling on all citizens to help fight the rising tide of overweight and obesity among the nation's children. "Increasingly,...

Proposed FY 2009 Health and Human Services budget.(VITAL SIGNS)
May 1, 2008... Proposed FY 2009 Health and Human Services Budget Temporary Assistance For Needy Families 2% Children's programs 3% Medicare 56% Medicaid ...

AHA recommends cardiac screening before ADHD drugs: wide use of ECGs may be controversial.(News)
May 1, 2008... Pediatricians are likely to receive a deluge of questions from concerned parents regarding new recommendations from the American Heart Association suggesting that a child's risk for adverse cardiac outcomes should be evaluated before initiating...

Pediatricians on board for medical home 'journey'.(News)
May 1, 2008... WASHINGTON -- A who's who list of physician organizations, advocacy groups, pharmaceutical manufacturers, and employers is throwing its weight behind the idea that the medical home model can cure much of what ails the health care system. ...

Migraine linked to sleep problems.(News)
May 1, 2008... CHICAGO -- Sleep apnea was observed in more than half of children with migraine in a study of 90 children aged 5-19 years with headache and sleep complaints. Evaluation by polysomnography revealed sleep apnea in 56% of children with...

Children report minimal pain from diabetes needlesticks.(News)
May 1, 2008... Children with diabetes said that they felt no pain or very mild pain with insulin injections and finger-pricks for blood glucose monitoring, even with intensive therapy that required frequent daily needlesticks, in a study of 112 German...

Besides diabetes, Hb[A.sub.1c] may flag impaired glucose tolerance.(News)
May 1, 2008... PHILADELPHIA -- Testing for hemoglobin [A.sub.1c] could be an effective means of screening not only for type 2 diabetes but also for impaired glucose tolerance, according to the results of a study of 74 children. "Type 2 diabetes was...

Dengue hitting U.S., mostly in Texas and Florida.(Infectious Diseases)
May 1, 2008... MIAMI -- From 1977 to 2004, there were 3,806 suspected cases of dengue imported to the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Many more cases probably go unreported each year because surveillance in...

Study: ID-related infant hospitalizations at 43%.(Infectious Diseases)
May 1, 2008... Infectious disease hospitalizations accounted for 43% of all infant hospitalizations in the United States in 2003, at a cost of $690 million, results from a large national analysis of hospital records demonstrated. Younger infants, boys,...

Bocavirus may not be a pathogen in children.(Infectious Diseases)
May 1, 2008... Bocavirus does not appear to be pathogenic in children, Canadian researchers reported. Investigators in Sweden, Japan, Australia, and Thailand have previously reported bocavirus infections in children that appeared to be associated with...

Isolating E. coli O157 cases may halve its spread.(Infectious Diseases)
May 1, 2008... The immediate isolation of children with acute Escherichia coli O157 infection could potentially decrease the number of secondary cases by half, according to results of a retrospective study of 89 primary cases in a 2005 outbreak. In...

New teen STD data reinforce annual screening.(ID Consult)
May 1, 2008... The pediatric and family medicine communities need to do a better job of assessing sexual activity in adolescent patients, screening sexually active teens for sexually transmitted diseases, and counseling them about how to avoid becoming...

Bacterial meningitis score may be less effective in France.(Infectious Diseases)
May 1, 2008... The Bacterial Meningitis Score correctly identified acute bacterial meningitis in 884 out of 889 affected children, indicating that the tool, while 99.6% sensitive, still missed cases, the authors of a French study reported. "As with any...

Ten ID articles likely to change your practice.(Infectious Diseases)
May 1, 2008... MIAMI BEACH -- Your diagnosis and management of infectious diseases in children should have changed following the publication of 10 articles in 2006 and 2007, according to Dr. Russell W Steele. The reports range from antimicrobial therapy...

Vigilance urged for measles imported into U.S.(Infectious Diseases)
May 1, 2008... MIAMI -- Two recent outbreaks of measles in the United States highlight the need for vaccination and vigilance for infections imported from overseas, including Europe, according to Dr. Carol J. Baker. "How could this happen in 2008? We need...

EC visit is a prime time to screen for STDs.(Infectious Diseases)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2008... CHICAGO -- Only 27% of women requesting emergency contraception received screening for chlamydia and gonorrhea, and of those who were screened, 12% were positive for at least one infection, according to the findings of a study conducted in 10...

Early neglect may predict aggression in children.(Behavioral Pediatrics)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2008... Children who were neglected during their first 2 years of life were significantly more likely to develop aggressive behavior between ages 4 and 8 years than children who experienced neglect at older ages or children who were physically abused,...

Smile and the kids smile with you.(Behavioral Consult)
May 1, 2008... Over the years, this column has featured a number of heavy topics, from divorce to grief to abuse and serious illness. In fact, pediatrics usually isn't like that. By and large, it's a happy specialty, drawing physicians who take joy in...

Try strength-based counseling programs for teenagers.(Behavioral Pediatrics)
May 1, 2008... MIAMI -- Many parents know what they need to say "no" to--violence, tobacco, alcohol, sexually transmitted diseases--but could use guidance from pediatricians to encourage the physical growth, development, and emotional well-being of...

Screen for inhalant abuse among teens, preteens.(Behavioral Pediatrics)
May 1, 2008... WASHINGTON -- The drugs of choice for children aged 12 and 13 years are inhalants, surpassing pain relievers, marijuana, and any other illegal drug, with 3.4% of 12-year-olds and 4.8% of 13-year-olds using in the past year. This is...

Atomoxetine has no lasting effect on ODD in ADHD kids.(Behavioral Pediatrics)
May 1, 2008... A tomoxetine had no lasting effect on oppositional defiant disorder symptoms in a new report of manufacturer data from children with both ODD and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. The findings from the 8-week, multicenter,...

How to focus well-child visits on development.(Behavioral Pediatrics)
May 1, 2008... LA JOLLA, CALIF. -- National studies show that the time spent with a clinician during well-child visits averages as much as 20 minutes, with another 20-minute waiting period, yet parents bring their children to only about 75% of the recommended...

Teens' bedroom TVs may hurt activity level, diet, grades.(Behavioral Pediatrics)
May 1, 2008... Adolescents who had television sets in their bedrooms had less physical activity, poorer dietary habits, and worse school performance than did adolescents without bedroom TVs, investigators from the University of Minnesota School of Public...

Cookbook medicine.(Letters From Maine)
May 1, 2008... Unless you've handed over the care of all of your sick patients to the hospitalists, you will have noticed cookbook medicine creeping into the care of your hospitalized patients. It comes clothed in several transparent disguises: "CareMaps,"...

Regulations help stop handgun violence.(Guest Editorial)
May 1, 2008... The U.S. Supreme Court recently heard arguments concerning the District of Columbia's longstanding hand gun ban. The American Academy of Pediatrics has joined other organizations in asking the court to uphold the ban. Why do we care? Simply...

Adenotonsillectomy doesn't "cure" OSA in most: anti-inflammatories appear to help those with mild sleep-disordered breathing after adenotonsillectomy.(Clinical Rounds)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2008... FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. -- Although adenotonsillectomy remains the first-line treatment for children with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome, only about 25%-30% will experience complete resolution of symptoms, according to a prospective study. ...

A curious case study: toxins should always be a suspect.(Clinical Rounds)(Case study)
May 1, 2008... MIAMI BEACH -- A resourceful resident put a team of physicians on the tight track to solve a diagnostic mystery of a 3-year-old boy whose condition was in danger of becoming critical. The boy presented at the Children's Hospital of...

Newborn SCID screening launches in Wisconsin.(Clinical Rounds)
May 1, 2008... PHILADELPHIA -- A neonatal screening test for severe combined immunodeficiency was added to Wisconsin's newborn screening panel Jan. 1. Wisconsin is the first state to adopt this newborn screening. Severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID)...

10-minute test assesses idiopathic short stature.(Clinical Rounds)
May 1, 2008... PHILADELPHIA -- A 10-minute-growth hormone-releasing hormone stimulation test may be more precise than the standard 120-minute test, which can be difficult to perform on children being evaluated for idiopathic short stature because of the...

Genes play role in weight-gain risk, behaviors.(Clinical Rounds)
May 1, 2008... BALTIMORE -- Genes appear to play a role not only in a child's vulnerability to weight gain but also in behaviors that can lead to weight gain, according to data presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychosomatic Society. Jane...

Tips on assessing young athletes for concussion.(Clinical Rounds)
May 1, 2008... MIAMI BEACH -- Primary care physicians can play a crucial role in the assessment, treatment, and follow-up of young athletes who experience a concussion, according to a leading pediatric sports medicine specialist. Each year in the United...

Patanase nasal spray, Prilosec delayed-release oral suspension.(New & Approved)
May 1, 2008... Patanase Nasal Spray (olopatadine HCI, Alcon Inc.) The Food and Drug Administration approved Patanase nasal spray for the relief of symptoms of seasonal allergic rhinitis in patients aged 12 years and older. * Recommended Dosage: Two...

Fragile X syndrome: awareness coming of age.(Special Needs: Realizing Potential)
May 1, 2008... Although it is autism that continues to grab the lion's share of the headlines, fragile X syndrome remains the most common cause of inherited cognitive deficit. It has an estimated incidence of 1 in 4,000 males and 1 in 6,000-8,000 females....

Females have survival edge in pediatric melanoma.(Clinical Rounds)(Clinical report)
May 1, 2008... CHICAGO -- Just as in adults, female gender confers a survival benefit in children with cutaneous melanoma, new data show. In a study of 239 children (mean age 16 years), females had significantly increased overall survival when compared...

Optimizing options for treatment of molluscum.(Clinical Rounds)
May 1, 2008... MIAMI BEACH -- Treatment of molluscum contagiosum can be guided by patient age, lesion location, cosmetic considerations, and the anxiety of the parent and patient, according to two presentations at the annual Masters of Pediatrics conference...

Congenital dermoid cysts need imaging, except on eyebrow.(Clinical Rounds)
May 1, 2008... SAN FRANCISCO -- Nearly half of congenital dermoid cysts on infant heads may have risky intracranial connections that link the outside world to the brain, according to one pediatric dermatologist. Tracts that expose the brain put a child...

A primer on advocating for children's issues.(Practice Trends)
May 1, 2008... MIAMI -- When meeting with elected officials to advocate on behalf of children in your community, build rapport with the legislator, know your topic--including the positive and negative aspects--and leave a brief written summary of your...

Newborn screening law signed.(Policy & Practice)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... Last month, Congress approved and President Bush signed legislation to establish national guidelines on comprehensive newborn screening. The Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act also provides federal funding to educate parents and health...

Panel looking at vaccine safety.(Policy & Practice)
May 1, 2008... The National Vaccine Advisory Committee's Vaccine Safety Working Group last month began developing research priorities for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention intended to guide the CDC's scientific direction over the next 5 years in...

Foodborne illness strategy needed.(Policy & Practice)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... A CDC report showed little change in the incidence of some foodborne infections after a period of decline, leading to a call for new foodborne-illness strategies. "The results show that prevention efforts have been partly successful, but there...

Poor Medicaid dental access noted.(Policy & Practice)
May 1, 2008... Children in families with low incomes suffer disproportionately from dental caries, and even though state Medicaid programs are required to provide dental services to eligible children, enrollees' access to care is poor, according to a report....

Maryland approves dental law.(Policy & Practice)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... Beginning Oct. 1, dental hygienists in Maryland will be allowed to provide preventive care such as cleanings, sealants, and fluoride treatments in public health settings without dentist supervision, thanks to a new law. The new law, approved...

GAO: SCHIP income rule is invalid.(Policy & Practice)
May 1, 2008... A letter from the Bush administration issued last August that limited enrollment in the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) violated federal law because the administration failed to follow the proper rule-making procedure,...

The benefits of belonging.(On the Learning Curve)
May 1, 2008... A common theme in this column is he numerous time and work pressures young physicians face. While it is challenging to think about adding anything extra to your schedule, there can definitely be advantages to making time to join one or more...

The Canadian health care conundrum.(Health Policy: The Fine Line)
May 1, 2008... I recently received an e-mail from my mother with an attached hyperlink and cryptic text that read, "Is it really like this in Canada? Scary." The health care system in Canada garnered increased press with the release of Michael Moore's...

When the patient is a close friend.(The Rest of Your Life)
May 1, 2008... When Dr. Eniko K. Pivnick's 5-year-old daughter Lilla required eye surgery to correct her esotropia 13 years ago, there was no doubt in her mind that she wanted her close friend and colleague Dr. Natalie C. Kerr to perform the operation. ...

The acne patient: quality-of-life and clinical questions.
May 1, 2008... Researchers are expanding their work beyond studies on the impact of ache on quality-of-life (QoL) issues and investigating the potential role of diet in managing the care of individuals with ache vulgaris. This article reports on various study...

Approach to the patient with acne: therapeutic challenges.
May 1, 2008... Today's existing and emerging therapies and combination regimens for acne offer patients and clinicians an increasingly broader range of options for effective treatment, improved tolerability, and sustained clinical benefits. However, when...

New and emerging topical treatments for acne.
May 1, 2008... The armamentarium of topical treatment options for acne vulgaris continues to grow, and these developments are welcome additions as clinicians seek to optimize therapy for individual patients. Several of the latest options include new...