Pediatrics News and Research

Latest Pediatrics News and Research

Physical fitness plays key role in brain health and academic performance

Physical fitness in childhood and adolescence is beneficial for both physical and mental health throughout life.

19 Jun 2014

Educational sleep program increases sleep duration in preschoolers

Taking part in an educational sleep program resulted in a 30-minute average increase in sleep duration at a one-month follow-up for preschoolers, according to a new study from the University of Michigan.

18 Jun 2014

UT Southwestern launches regional brain tissue collection program

To promote greater understanding of autism, UT Southwestern Medical Center has launched a regional brain tissue collection program that will support research on this condition, which affects an estimated one in 68 children.

18 Jun 2014

New studies shed light on the mechanism of childhood obesity

With the increase in childhood obesity and the associated increase in type 2 diabetes among children and adolescents, there is growing interest in how children's bodies process the foods they eat and how obesity and diabetes begin to develop at early ages.

18 Jun 2014

Domestic violence or trauma ages children's DNA, shortens their chromosomes

A new Tulane University School of Medicine study finds that the more fractured families are by domestic violence or trauma, the more likely that children will bear the scars down to their DNA.

18 Jun 2014

Single dose restores normal cellular signaling in mouse model of autism

In a further test of a novel theory that suggests autism is the consequence of abnormal cell communication, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine report that an almost century-old drug approved for treating sleeping sickness also restores normal cellular signaling in a mouse model of autism, reversing symptoms of the neurological disorder in animals that were the human biological age equivalent of 30 years old.

18 Jun 2014

Maternal health key to healthier nation

Investing in the health of expectant mothers is crucial in helping to create a healthier nation, according to a health expert at Sheffield Hallam University.

17 Jun 2014

New well-child care guidelines have long-term impact on children's lives

Well-child visits are the foundation of pediatric primary care in the U.S. Accounting for more than one-third of all outpatient visits for infants and toddlers, the appointments are intended to give doctors the opportunity to identify health, social, developmental and behavioral issues that could have a long-term impact on children's lives.

17 Jun 2014

Parents value convenience of sports physicals but recognize importance of thorough doctor visits

Nearly half of parents say any qualified health care provider - not just a child's usual provider - can do a sports physical, according to a new University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health.

17 Jun 2014

Tips to keep children safe during extreme hot weather

Several US states and cities have seen record breaking temperatures this summer. Doctors at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center want to give tips to parents and guardians on how they can keep their kids safe during the hot weather.

17 Jun 2014

Type I interferons can block development of allergy- and asthma-driving Th2 cells

A mechanism that could underlie the development of cells that drive asthma and allergies has been uncovered by immunology researchers at UT-Southwestern Medical Center.

17 Jun 2014

Affordable Care Act to have significant impact on patients with diabetes

The Affordable Care Act (ACA, also known as Obamacare) is dramatically changing health care delivery in the U.S. Specific parts of the new law, which will be phased in through 2020, will have a significant impact on patients with diabetes and prediabetes, as explored in a comprehensive Review article published in Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

17 Jun 2014

Research on effects of caffeine on young people after puberty

Caffeine intake by children and adolescents has been rising for decades, due in large part to the popularity of caffeinated sodas and energy drinks, which now are marketed to children as young as four.

16 Jun 2014

Heart rate may identify premature infants at risk of developing necrotizing enterocolitis

Measuring variability of heart rate may identify premature infants at risk of developing necrotizing enterocolitis, a serious inflammatory condition that can lead to death, according to Penn State College of Medicine researchers.

13 Jun 2014

2 medications equally effective in treating major epileptic brain seizures in children

A recently published clinical study in the Journal of the American Medical Association has answered an urgent question that long puzzled ER pediatricians: Is the drug lorazepam really safer and more effective than diazepam - the U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved medication as first line therapy most often used by emergency room doctors to control major epileptic seizures in children?

13 Jun 2014

Survivors of childhood cancers hospitalized more often many years after cancer treatment

Survivors of childhood cancers were hospitalized more often and for longer durations because of blood disorders and other problems, many years after cancer treatment was completed, compared with the general population, according to a study published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

13 Jun 2014

Findings provide new strategy for developing safe, effective vaccine against strep throat

An international team of scientists, led by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, have identified the genes encoding a molecule that famously defines Group A Streptococcus (strep), a pathogenic bacterial species responsible for more than 700 million infections worldwide each year.

12 Jun 2014

GPM Pediatrics physician addresses potential health risks in kiddie pools

Michael Gabriel of GPM Pediatrics, a Brooklyn Pediatric Center, discusses an article posted on JC Online that discusses the potential health risks that lurk in kiddie pools.

12 Jun 2014

Otsuka Pharmaceutical begins tolvaptan Phase 3b study in patients with ADPKD

Otsuka Pharmaceutical Development & Commercialization, Inc., announced today that patient enrollment has begun for a new Phase 3b study of tolvaptan for adult patients with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), the most common, life-threatening, inherited genetic kidney disorder.

11 Jun 2014

New research collaboration aims to develop better therapies for autoimmune diseases

Seattle Children's Research Institute and biotechnology company Kineta, Inc. today launched the Alliance for Children's Therapeutics (ACT), a first-of-its-kind pediatric research and funding collaboration designed to speed development of new medications for children and teens with lupus nephritis and other autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis, Type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis.

11 Jun 2014