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The pressing need to save the lives of women and newborns in India

In this post on the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's "Impatient Optimists" blog, the second in a multi-week series, Joy Lawn, director of Evidence and Policy for the Saving Newborn Lives program of Save the Children, and Kate Kerber, the Africa regional specialist with Saving Newborn Lives at Save the Children U.S., "explore the pressing need -- and what our partners are doing to address the need -- to save the lives of women and newborns in India,".

3 Sep 2011

ATS issues guidelines on use of FENO in different clinical settings

The American Thoracic Society has issued the first-ever guidelines on the use of fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FENO) that address when to use FENO and how to interpret FENO levels in different clinical settings.

3 Sep 2011

Novel analysis of MRI scans reveals distinct features of autistic brain

Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital have used a novel method for analyzing brain-scan data to distinguish children with autism from typically developing children.

3 Sep 2011

WHO African region member states have challenges to meet MDGs, WHO/AFRO Director says

Speaking at the 61st session of the WHO Regional Office for Africa (AFRO) in Yamoussoukro, Cote d'Ivoire, on Thursday, African Regional Director of WHO Luis Sambo said "that 46 Africa member countries still had remarkable challenges to scale before meeting the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)," Nigeria's The Nation reports.

3 Sep 2011

Early treatment of chronic hip pain in young athletes may have long term impact on health

Treating young athletes with chronic hip pain may be the key to slowing or halting the progression of degenerative hip disease.

3 Sep 2011

Finland national health institute finds link between H1N1 flu vaccine and children's narcolepsy

"Finland's national health institute said on Thursday its latest research on previously found links between children's narcolepsy and GlaxoSmithKline's Pandemrix vaccine against H1N1 swine flu also involved a genetic risk factor," Reuters reports.

3 Sep 2011

Progress in reducing child mortality rates at Somalia, Ethiopia border refugee camps is slow, U.S. official says

Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Reuben Brigety, "the top U.S. official for refugee issues, ... says that despite intensive efforts, relief agencies have made little progress in reducing child mortality rates at refugee camps along Somalia's border with Ethiopia," VOA News reports.

3 Sep 2011

Going bananas may help kids breathe easier

Going bananas may help kids breathe easier. Children who ate just one banana a day had a 34% less chance of developing asthmatic symptoms, according to new British research.

3 Sep 2011

Tempo of puberty linked to anxiety, depression

Children who go through puberty at a faster rate are more likely to act out and to suffer from anxiety and depression, according to a study by researchers at Penn State, Duke University and the University of California, Davis. The results suggest that primary care providers, teachers and parents should look not only at the timing of puberty in relation to kids' behavior problems, but also at the tempo of puberty -- how fast or slow kids go through puberty.

2 Sep 2011

New medicines to target LPA receptors may prevent serious developmental brain diseases

Examining brain damage that occurs when fetuses in the womb are deprived of oxygen, researchers at The Scripps Research Institute have discovered that damage does not occur randomly but is linked to the specific action of a naturally occurring fatty molecule called LPA, acting through a receptor that transfers information into young brain cells.

2 Sep 2011

More strides against childhood cancer

The treatment of childhood cancer is one of the great success stories of modern medicine. A few decades ago, only 20 percent of children survived the disease. Today, overall survival rates approach 80 percent. Yet cancer remains the leading cause of death from disease in U.S. children older than 1 year of age, and some types of pediatric cancer continue to have poor survival rates.

2 Sep 2011

UNICEF, NGOs in West Africa work to encourage better sanitation in rural areas

UNICEF and non-governmental organizations "operating in West Africa say the main barrier to more pit latrines in rural areas is not poverty or lack of resources, but a lack of understanding about costs and benefits," IRIN reports.

2 Sep 2011

Tips for parents to identify children with vision problems

Nearly 80 percent of what a child learns during their first 12 years is obtained through their vision. Though vision problems may seem easy to identify, they actually can be difficult for parents to discern. Still, parents need to be attentive since vision disorders are the fourth-most-common disability in children in the U.S.

2 Sep 2011

New IDSA/PIDS guidelines can thwart pneumonia in children

Immunizations, including a yearly flu vaccine, are the best way to protect children from life-threatening pneumonia, according to new guidelines from the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society and the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

2 Sep 2011

Scientists discover genetic cause of extreme thinness

Scientists have discovered a genetic cause of extreme thinness for the first time, in a study published today in the journal Nature.

2 Sep 2011

Integrating rapid syphilis and HIV testing for pregnant women could reduce maternal, child morbidity and mortality

"A study conducted in Uganda and Zambia by the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF) found high rates of syphilis and HIV co-infection among pregnant women in both countries," but showed that "integrating rapid syphilis screening and HIV testing for pregnant women was feasible, cost-effective, and helped to prevent transmission of syphilis and HIV from mother-to-child," PlusNews reports.

2 Sep 2011

MRSA ‘superbug’: Everyone at risk!

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a type of staph bacteria that does not respond to commonly used antibiotic treatments, is a type of infection that has been a problem in hospital settings for many years. Back in 2000 it began steadily making its way into the lives of otherwise healthy people, especially children, who are not typically at risk for the fast-moving bacteria.

2 Sep 2011

Americans ‘gulping’ down sweetened beverages: Study

According to health experts half of Americans drink a soda or sugary beverage each day. One in 20 people drinks the equivalent of more than four cans of soda each day. This is in spite of the health officials’ recommendation to limit sweetened beverages to less than half a can.

31 Aug 2011

U.S. newborn mortality rate higher than South Korea, Cuba, Malaysia, Lithuania, Poland and Israel: Report

According to a new report babies in the United States have a higher risk of dying during their first month of life than do babies born in 40 other countries. Some of the countries that outrank the United States in terms of newborn death risk are South Korea, Cuba, Malaysia, Lithuania, Poland and Israel, according to the study.

31 Aug 2011

HPV vaccination drives to prevent cervical cancers

Mexico plans to administer the vaccine against human papillomavirus (HPV), which can cause cervical cancer, to all girls beginning next year, the country's health ministry said Tuesday.

31 Aug 2011