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Lancet neonatal survival series

Three million of the four million newborn babies who die worldwide each year could be saved by low-tech and low-cost interventions, concludes a landmark series of articles published online by The Lancet (Thursday March 3, 2005).

3 Mar 2005

Beginning of new wave - first generation to turn 18 since technology and treatments have allowed them to survive to adulthood

More than half a million children with special health-care needs will turn 18 this year, the first generation to reach adulthood since sweeping medical advances ensured an unprecedented number would survive congenital conditions that until recently would have killed them.

27 Feb 2005

Several causes for concern regarding children's health in general practice in Britain

An editorial in this weeks BMJ highlights several causes for concern regarding children's health in general practice in Britain. Once greatly admired, the British model of general practice raises concern over the future of children's health.

27 Feb 2005

Cesarean delivery is associated with an increased risk of childhood asthma hospitalization in premature infants

Cesarean delivery is associated with an increased risk of childhood asthma hospitalization in premature infants, but not in full-term infants, according to a report published in this month’s Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, the scientific journal of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI).

22 Feb 2005

Simple drug has the potential to save many lives threatened by malaria

A simple drug, given to children with severe malaria before they reach hospital, has the potential to save many lives, say researchers in this week's BMJ.

10 Feb 2005

Bush Administration opens the door to the elimination of critical health services for the most vulnerable women, infants and children

"The budget proposal released by the Administration this morning opens the door to the elimination of critical health services for the most vulnerable women, infants and children. The March of Dimes strongly opposes any attempt to narrow Medicaid benefits for these at risk groups.

7 Feb 2005

Nearly 10,000 preterm births could have been prevented in 2002

Nearly 10,000 preterm births could have been prevented in 2002 if all pregnant women at high risk for a premature baby and eligible for weekly injections of a derivative of the hormone progesterone had received them, according to a new study published in the February issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology.

31 Jan 2005

Scientists unravel first step in translating genetic information in order to build a protein

Timing is everything, it seems, even in science. A team led by Johns Hopkins scientists has unraveled the first step in translating genetic information in order to build a protein, only to find that it's not one step but two.

24 Jan 2005

Added sugar in fruit-flavored drinks and cola-type soft drinks undoes the good done by vegetables

American preschoolers get about 14 to 17 teaspoons of added sugar a day, on average, mostly from fruit-flavored drinks, high-fat desserts and cola-type soft drinks which displace the grain, vegetable, fruit and dairy food groups and lower the quality of their diet, a Penn State study has shown.

12 Jan 2005

First new guidelines in more than a decade for managing asthma during pregnancy

The report reflects new medications that have emerged and updates treatment recommendations for pregnant women with asthma based on a systematic review of data on the safety of asthma medications during pregnancy. An executive summary ("Quick Reference") of the guidelines is published in the January issue of the Journal of Allergy & Clinical Immunology.

12 Jan 2005

Fewer children in working families are uninsured, but many still falling through the cracks

Recent strides have been made to increase health care coverage for low income children in California, but a significant number of children in working poor families remain uninsured, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley.

4 Jan 2005

£2.5 million to support further research into gene therapy for cystic fibrosis

The funding commitment was made in the Genetics White Paper, 'Our Inheritance, Our Future: Realising the potential of genetics in the NHS' and will help to ensure that those with cystic fibrosis benefit as soon as possible from the latest advances in genetic knowledge and technologies.

4 Jan 2005

Gene therapy effective in helping children with severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID)

A UK study in this week’s issue of THE LANCET provides further evidence that gene therapy can be effective in creating a functional immune system for infants with severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID).

20 Dec 2004

A decade of neglect has weakened UNICEF and threatened the future of child survival

As a high-level forum assessing the progress on global health in relation to the millennium development goals concluded in Abuja, Nigeria, last week, the rhetoric of success repeated by those charged with ending the needless deaths of millions of the world's children masks their own deep-seated failure to grapple with critical institutional weaknesses in their own ranks.

13 Dec 2004

300 million people in the developing world are seriously ill from intestinal worms

300 million people in the developing world are seriously ill from intestinal worms. Treatment is cheap and effective—and if successfully delivered with other public-health measures could make a substantial contribution to achieving many of the world’s Millennium development Goals (MDGs), concludes the lead editorial in this week’s issue of THE LANCET.

4 Dec 2004

A decade of neglect has weakened UNICEF and threatened the future of child survival

As a high-level forum assessing the progress on global health in relation to the millennium development goals concludes its meeting in Abuja, Nigeria, today, the rhetoric of success repeated by those charged with ending the needless deaths of millions of the world's children masks their own deep-seated failure to grapple with critical institutional weaknesses in their own ranks.

4 Dec 2004

Autism results from failure of brain areas to work together

In contrast to people who do not have autism, people with autism remember letters of the alphabet in a part of the brain that ordinarily processes shapes, according to a study from a collaborative program of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

29 Nov 2004

The United States has seen a steep rise in caesareans to women with no reported medical risk

Researchers analysed information on four million births per year between 1991 and 2001, identifying mothers with no medical risk or labour and delivery complication noted on the birth certificate. From this group of mothers, they examined those cases where mothers had a first-time caesarean.

18 Nov 2004

High levels of stress double the risk of painful periods

Primary dysmenorrhoea, otherwise known as painful periods without any organic cause, is one of the most common gynaecological problems among women of childbearing age.

17 Nov 2004

Early infection in low-birth-weight infants linked with poor neurodevelopmental

Extremely low-birth-weight (ELBW) infants who have an infection during their hospitalization following birth are more likely to have adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes than those infants who do not have an infection, according to a study in the November 17 issue of JAMA.

17 Nov 2004

Child Health News and Research

Lancet neonatal survival series

Beginning of new wave - first generation to turn 18 since technology and treatments have allowed them to survive to adulthood

Several causes for concern regarding children's health in general practice in Britain

Cesarean delivery is associated with an increased risk of childhood asthma hospitalization in premature infants

Simple drug has the potential to save many lives threatened by malaria

Bush Administration opens the door to the elimination of critical health services for the most vulnerable women, infants and children

Nearly 10,000 preterm births could have been prevented in 2002

Scientists unravel first step in translating genetic information in order to build a protein

Added sugar in fruit-flavored drinks and cola-type soft drinks undoes the good done by vegetables

First new guidelines in more than a decade for managing asthma during pregnancy

Fewer children in working families are uninsured, but many still falling through the cracks

£2.5 million to support further research into gene therapy for cystic fibrosis

Gene therapy effective in helping children with severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID)

A decade of neglect has weakened UNICEF and threatened the future of child survival

300 million people in the developing world are seriously ill from intestinal worms

A decade of neglect has weakened UNICEF and threatened the future of child survival

Autism results from failure of brain areas to work together

The United States has seen a steep rise in caesareans to women with no reported medical risk

High levels of stress double the risk of painful periods

Early infection in low-birth-weight infants linked with poor neurodevelopmental

Sensing a Healthier Future

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

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