Child Health News

RSS

A new guideline evaluates the treatment of infantile spasms

A new guideline developed by the American Academy of Neurology and the Child Neurology Society evaluates the treatment of infantile spasms. The guideline is published in the May 25 issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

24 May 2004

Mothers who are concerned about their own health may unwittingly be passing their anxieties on to their children

A new study of parenting suggests that mothers who suffer from certain illnesses like Irritable Bowel Syndrome are more likely to take their babies to the doctors for a range of minor problems.

24 May 2004

Data from Indiana youth health survey released

Indiana State health officials today released data from a 2003 health survey of Indiana youth in grades 9 through 12 that assess whether teens are engaging in certain risk behaviors.

23 May 2004

Cochlear implant early in life helps children with hearing loss to acquire language and communication skills

Receiving a cochlear implant early in life helps children with profound hearing loss to acquire language and communication skills similar to their hearing peers, according to an article in the May issue of the Archives of Otolaryngology—Head & Neck Surgery, a theme issue on pediatric cochlear implants and one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

22 May 2004

Suspension of the initial dose of hepatitis B vaccine appears to have contributed to fewer newborns being vaccinated in 2000

A temporary suspension of the initial dose of hepatitis B vaccine appears to have contributed to fewer newborns being vaccinated for hepatitis B in 2000 than in 1998, according to a study published in the May 19 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

22 May 2004

Teenagers most vulnerable to the addictive lure of cigarettes

Teenagers have long been regarded as the age group most vulnerable to the addictive lure of cigarettes, and a new report compiling five years of studies from a UC Irvine tobacco research program provides details why this is very likely true.

21 May 2004

Research reveals that children with mild head injury may be at risk of long-term complications

New research from the University of Warwick reveals that children with even mild head injury may be at risk of long-term complications, including personality changes, emotional, behavioural and learning problems.

21 May 2004

Improving the care delivered to children with special health care needs

Health care delivered close to home is vitally important, especially when the patient is a child. But how do community pediatric practices adapt to offer the best care when faced with a child who has complex and often, multiple health needs? Reporting in this month's issue of Pediatrics, Dartmouth researchers outline a process designed to help any practice become a state of the art "medical home" for such children.

20 May 2004

Rise in type 2 diabetes rates linked to fizzy drinks

A recent survey in England found 18% of schoolchildren to be overweight and a further 6% to be obese. On this basis, some 1,400 children in the United Kingdom would be currently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and over 20,000 children with impaired glucose tolerance.

20 May 2004

Exercise reverses signs of artery disease in obese children

Healthy but obese adolescents display abnormal responses to tests of blood vessel function, but after a short course of exercise their test results match those of lean youngsters, even though they remain heavy, according to a new study in the May 19, 2004 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

19 May 2004

Parents overestimate their children's use of bicycle helmets and seatbelts

Parents think their children use bicycle helmets and seatbelts more often than children say they use them, according to a new study by a University of Michigan Health System pediatric surgeon.

19 May 2004

Fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in obese children has distinct characteristics different from those found in adults

Potentially life-threatening non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in obese children has distinct characteristics, often different from those found in adults, according to a University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine study led by Jeffrey Schwimmer, M.D., assistant professor of pediatrics.

19 May 2004

Blood pressure screening for children should start at age 3, according to the latest government diagnosis and treatment guidelines

Blood pressure screening for children should start at age 3, according to the latest government diagnosis and treatment guidelines that were presented at the American Society of Hypertension’s Nineteenth Annual Scientific Meeting.

19 May 2004

Report rejects childhood vaccines as a cause of autism

A pivotal report issued today by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) rejects childhood vaccines as a cause of autism. The findings, based on reviews of current scientific evidence, are a significant affirmation of vaccine safety, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

19 May 2004

Exposure to nicotine may change adolescents' brains and behavior

The adolescent brain appears to be more responsive to nicotine’s rewarding effects than the adult brain, a UC Irvine Transdisciplinary Tobacco Use Research Center (TTURC) animal study has found.

15 May 2004

Faster growing babies are at greater risk of heart disease and stroke

Medical Research Council (MRC) and Institute of Child Health scientists say that babies who grow fast are at greater risk of heart disease and stroke in later life. Because breast-fed babies grow less rapidly than those fed formula milk, the work strongly reinforces the message that breast feeding is best.

14 May 2004

Twice as many overweight children and almost three times as many overweight adolescents as there were in 1980's

The number of people who are overweight or obese is increasing at an alarming rate in the United States. There are nearly twice as many overweight children and almost three times as many overweight adolescents as there were in 1980.

14 May 2004

Breastfeeding decreases risk of heart disease later in life

A recent UK study of 216 teenagers, published in the Lancet, found that breastfeeding in infancy is likely to reduce the risk of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease in later life.

14 May 2004

1 in every 10 children worldwide is obese

In a comprehensive dossier revealing how the global obesity epidemic is affecting children, the International ObesityTaskForce says that one in 10 children is overweight, a total of 155 million. Around 30-45 million within that figure are classified as obese - accounting for 2-3% of the world’s children aged 5-17. A further 22 million younger children are also affected according to previous IOTF global estimates based on WHO data for under fives.

13 May 2004

Chromosome losses can signal an especially poor response to therapy

A new international study of children with a severe form of acute lymphoblastic leukemia(ALL) shows that certain chromosome losses can signal an especially poor response to therapy, but that other chromosome abnormalities have no effect on treatment survival.

13 May 2004