Children News and Research

RSS

UNHCR reports 10 children dying daily and women facing risk of rape in Ethiopian refugee camps

"Ten Somali children under the age of five are dying every day of hunger-related causes in a refugee camp in Ethiopia, according to the U.N. refugee agency," the Guardian reports.

18 Aug 2011

Skin infection admissions are now the seventh-most-common reason for hospitalizations

The number of children hospitalized for skin and soft-tissue infections, most due to community-acquired Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), has more than doubled since 2000, a study by researchers at UC Davis and elsewhere has found.

18 Aug 2011

Viewpoints: Perry's Texas 'miracle' or 'sad fact'?; Reich on Medicare for all; Orszag on health IT boom

Twenty-six percent of Texans have no health insurance — the highest percentage of medically uninsured residents of any state. It leads the nation in the percentage of children who lack medical insurance. Texas has an inordinate number of employers who provide no insurance to their workers, partly because insurance rates are high, thanks to an absence of regulations.

18 Aug 2011

Roundup: Rx discounts for Medicaid programs are increasing; deadline extended for Mich. Medigap verifications

Governors have complained repeatedly in recent months that spiraling Medicaid costs are crushing their budgets. But there's good news on at least one line item in the $370 billion program — prescription drug discounts are getting more generous. According to a new report from the Inspector General of the U.S. Health and Human Services Department, discounts under the federal-state Medicaid program have been growing since 2006, adding up to a 45 percent rebate for most brand name drugs by 2009.

18 Aug 2011

Radioiodine being overused in thyroid cancer: Study

According to the latest research the use of radioactive iodine to treat thyroid cancer increased 40 percent from 1990 to 2008 even though the risks may outweigh the benefits for some patients, particularly those with early-stage tumors.

17 Aug 2011

Autism risk in siblings of autistic children is higher: Study

A new study reveals that parents with an autistic child have a 19% increased chance of getting another one with a similar disorder. Experts said the study, published Monday in the journal Pediatrics, is the most comprehensive of its kind and should be used to counsel families.

17 Aug 2011

Study: Eye contact seems to act as an invitation for mimicry

Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery but how do our brains decide when and who we should copy? Researchers from The University of Nottingham have found that the key may lie in an unspoken invitation communicated through eye contact.

17 Aug 2011

High parity linked with increased risk of ER-/PR- breast cancer

Investigators from the Boston University's Slone Epidemiology Center have reported findings that may shed light on why African American women have a disproportionately higher risk of developing more aggressive and difficult-to-treat breast cancers, specifically estrogen and progesterone receptor negative (ER-/PR-) cancers.

17 Aug 2011

U.S. 'can be proud' of past, future investments to improve food security

"Outside of immediate crisis relief," such as the administration of measles vaccinations or oral rehydration therapy for children affected by diarrheal diseases, the U.S. government's "past investments clearly are paying off" in the fight against drought and famine the Horn of Africa, former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist writes in a Wall Street Journal opinion piece.

17 Aug 2011

U-M's epilepsy surgery could successfully treat patients with seizures

John Ligerakis was told he had to learn to live with seizures that had made it challenging for him to work or drive a car. A young professional just starting his career, Ligerakis was devastated about what his future might bring.

17 Aug 2011

PERCH study to look at current and likely future causes of childhood pneumonia

Pneumonia kills more children around the world than any other disease, but the last major effort to study the causes of childhood pneumonia across many countries was conducted in the 1980's. This week, a groundbreaking new study called the Pneumonia Etiology Research for Child Health (PERCH) study gets off the ground.

17 Aug 2011

Volunteen Program at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Each summer, a select group of teenagers spend five weeks of their summer vacation to help children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases through the Volunteen Program at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. The annual program allows teens to explore career paths and develop leadership and team-building skills while helping patients.

17 Aug 2011

RWJF names UofL professor as Executive Nurse Fellow for 2011

Ruth Carrico, Ph.D., R.N., F.S.H.E.A., C.I.C., an associate professor at the School of Public Health and Information Sciences, University of Louisville, has been named one of just 21 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Executive Nurse Fellows for 2011.

17 Aug 2011

Seattle Children's receives Gates Foundation grant to complete development of Sea-PAP

Seattle Children's Research Institute today announced the receipt of a two-year, $2.3 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to complete prototype development of its new respiratory support device, called Seattle Children's Positive Airway Pressure.

17 Aug 2011

NIH study in mice shows potential new target for treatment of ADHD

A study using mice provides insight into how a specific receptor subtype in the brain could play a role in increasing a person's risk for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.

17 Aug 2011

Study finds broadest immune response from LAIV nasal spray vaccines for children

Children younger than 3 years old receive the same protective antibody response from the recommended two doses of licensed seasonal influenza vaccines regardless of whether the two doses are injected by needle, inhaled through a nasal spray or provided through one dose of each in any order, according to researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health.

17 Aug 2011

FDA approves two new strengths of Lupron Depot-PED for central precocious puberty

Abbott announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved two new strengths for three-month administration of Lupron Depot-PED (leuprolide acetate for depot suspension) for the treatment of children with central precocious puberty (CPP).

17 Aug 2011

U.S., international support for Somali refugees making a difference

Ambassador Ertharin Cousin, U.S. representative to the U.N. Agencies for Food and Agriculture in Rome, writes about her recent visit to the Dadaab refugee camps in Kenya in the State Department's "DipNote" blog.

16 Aug 2011

Somalia famine highlights need for long-term food security initiatives

Jill Biden, the wife of Vice President Joe Biden, and Former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (D-Tenn.) write in a USA Today opinion piece about their visit last week to the Dadaab refugee camps in Kenya, stating, "Amid the devastation, we saw the impact of [U.S. and international] aid. We saw inexpensive oral rehydration packs bring listless babies back to life. We saw children getting vitamins and vaccines that will stop the spread of deadly diseases throughout the camps."

16 Aug 2011

Disease outbreaks, looting hampering relief efforts in Somalia famine

"Outbreaks of measles and cholera are striking down Somali children already weakened by hunger, resulting in dozens of new fatalities," the Guardian reports (Rice, 8/13).

16 Aug 2011