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HHS: No double standard for kids' insurance policies

Kaiser Health News writer Mary Agnes Carey reports on the Obama administration's announcement Wednesday that health insurers must have the same rules for selling to healthy children as those with medical problems.

14 Oct 2010

Fear + worry = Fewer kids getting vaccinated

Kaiser Health News staff writer Phil Galewitz reports on a new study by the National Committee on Quality Assurance. He writes, "After years of steady progress, the percentage of 2 year olds in private health plans being immunized dropped last year, according to a report released today by an industry watchdog group" (Galewitz, 10/13).

14 Oct 2010

Childrens Hospital Los Angeles receives $1M NCI grant for eye port clinical trial to treat retinoblastoma in children

The Vision Center at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles has been awarded a $1 million grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to conduct a clinical trial on a new drug delivery system to treat young children diagnosed with retinoblastoma. The device is designed to deliver chemotherapy through a tiny silicone cup sealed to the outer surface (sclera) of the eye, which can more directly target cancer cells and greatly reduce the side effects caused by current chemotherapy treatments.

14 Oct 2010

Researchers report prevalence data on mental disorders among U.S. adolescents

Mental disorders in children are often difficult to identify due to the myriad of changes that occur during the normal course of maturation. For the first time, researchers at the National Institute of Mental Health have reported on the prevalence data on a broad range of mental disorders in a nationally representative sample of U.S. adolescents, which show that approximately one in five children in the U.S. meet the criteria for a mental disorder severe enough to disrupt their daily lives.

14 Oct 2010

Coalition for At-Risk Youth helps foster children improve self-esteem

There is no denying that teenagers in the foster care system need special support so they can begin to develop the skills that will take them successfully into adulthood. Those with skin, hair or nail diseases may face even more challenges because their self-esteem may have been shattered by the obvious signs of their condition.

14 Oct 2010

Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics Research Network to focus on neurodevelopmental disabilities

Recognizing both medical progress and unmet needs in the field of developmental disabilities, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia will house the Network Coordinating Center for a newly established collaborative organization, the Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics Research Network.

14 Oct 2010

Israeli's have higher life expectancy than Americans and other OECD members

A new study conducted by a researcher at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) for Jerusalem's Taub Center for Social Policy Studies in Israel reports that Israeli's have a higher life expectancy on average than Americans and residents of other OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) countries.

14 Oct 2010

CNF initiates annual event to raise awareness on infantile spasms

The Child Neurology Foundation (CNF) announced today the start of Infantile Spasms Awareness Week, an annual event to raise awareness and understanding of infantile spasms (IS) with pediatricians, child neurologists, parents and caregivers.

14 Oct 2010

Psychological and social challenges faced by parents of children with undiagnosed learning disorders

Parents of children with undiagnosed learning disorders, developmental deficits, and congenital abnormalities face a host of psychological and social challenges, which are explored in detail in a reflective article in Genetic Testing and Molecular Biomarkers, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. (www.liebertpub.com).

14 Oct 2010

GSK to expand donation of albendazole medicine to treat children with STH risk

At the launch of the World Health Organization's (WHO) first report on Neglected Tropical Diseases today, GSK announced a new five year commitment to expand the donation of its medicine albendazole to treat children at risk of intestinal worms, known as soil-transmitted helminths (STH).

14 Oct 2010

Justices wrestle with issue of protecting vaccine makers

The Supreme Court is grappling with the question of how much protection the 1986 National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act was meant to provide vaccine manufacturers against lawsuits. The case involves Hannah Bruesewitz, whose parents claim that a Wyeth-manufactured D.T.P. vaccine she received as an infant in 1992 led to developmental problems.

14 Oct 2010

Children recognise signs of neglect in peers: Survey

Researchers for Action for Children in a survey of over 3,000 eight to 12 year-olds found that 44% of children under 12 have seen other children who were dirty and smelled. Nearly two-thirds of children have seen suspected signs of neglect among their peers in classrooms, playgrounds, neighborhoods and activity clubs.

13 Oct 2010

Taller kids with IVF: Study

A new study has found that children born via IVF are typically taller than those born naturally. Newborn IVF babies created from a fresh embryo transferred back into the mother, also tended to be about 190g lighter than naturally conceived children.

13 Oct 2010

NCQA reports two new findings on nation's health care

The new State of Health Care Quality report from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) has two new findings about the nation's health care.

13 Oct 2010

Food allergies are becoming more common in U.S. children

The scary reality is that food allergies are becoming more and more common in the United States. In the last 10 years there has been an 18 percent increase in children with food allergies. In fact, one in 22 children has a food allergy. That means most likely there is at least one child in each classroom with a food allergy. Halloween parties and trick or treating are just a few of the end of fall activities that can heighten the danger for kids with food allergies.

13 Oct 2010

Study finds variations at state and national levels in children's health insurance coverage

Children's health insurance coverage still varies significantly at both the state and national levels, according to researchers at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health (SPH). In particular, researchers found gaps in coverage that vary across states by age, race/ethnicity and income.

13 Oct 2010

Study finds increase in hospitalizations for children due to ATV-related injuries

All-Terrain Vehicles (ATVs) are associated with a significant and increasing number of hospitalizations for children in the U.S., according to a new report by the Center for Injury Research and Policy at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Over a nine- year period (1997-2006) hospitalizations for ATV injuries increased 150 percent among youth younger than 18 years, with important demographic variations.

13 Oct 2010

10% of children have serious mental health condition, but only one-third receive treatment

One in ten children has a mental health condition that causes significant impairment and more than half of all lifetime cases begin by age 14, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) reported today, but only one-third get the help they need..

13 Oct 2010

SNM and SPR approve new North American Guidelines for Radiopharmaceutical Doses for Children

The Society of Nuclear Medicine (SNM) and the Society for Pediatric Radiology's Board of Directors recently approved new North American Guidelines for Radiopharmaceutical Doses for Children. These societies have expanded their pediatric radiation protection initiative by standardizing doses (based on body weight) for 11 nuclear medicine procedures commonly performed in children. The Alliance for Radiation Safety in Pediatric Imaging has collaborated in this effort, and will support efforts to promote the new, lower radiopharmaceutical doses.

13 Oct 2010

Global Hunger Index shows importance of addressing childhood malnutrition

The Global Hunger Index released Monday finds that many developing countries primarily in South Asia and Latin America have made significant progress in reducing hunger.

13 Oct 2010