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UCLA study to help reduce high medical costs for children with complex chronic diseases

The number of children with medically complex illness, such as cancer, congenital heart disease or cerebral palsy, is increasing due to advances in pediatric care that have led to increased survival in previously high-mortality conditions. This population, despite representing only 10 percent of children, accounts for a substantial proportion of overall pediatric hospital costs.

6 Feb 2013

Catholic hospital says its argument on fetuses was 'morally wrong'

A Catholic hospital is backtracking on its claim in court that two fetuses that died under its care were not human beings -- saying now that that argument was "morally wrong."

6 Feb 2013

Experimental TB vaccine does not protect infants, study shows

"Hopes that a much needed new tuberculosis [TB] vaccine was on the way, the first for 90 years, have been dashed by trial results showing it did not protect babies against the disease," the Guardian reports.

6 Feb 2013

Paternal obesity may alter genetic mechanisms in next generations

A father's obesity is one factor that may influence his children's health and potentially raise their risk for diseases like cancer, according to new research from Duke Medicine.

6 Feb 2013

Researchers detect social attention deficits in infants at increased risk of autism

Researchers at Yale School of Medicine are able to detect deficits in social attention in infants as young as six months of age who later develop Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD).

6 Feb 2013

Study shows link between outdoor particulate pollution and impaired fetal growth

Mothers who are exposed to particulate air pollution of the type emitted by vehicles, urban heating and coal power plants are significantly more likely to bear children of low birth weight, according to an international study led by co-principal investigator Tracey J. Woodruff, PhD, MPH, professor of obstetrics and gynecology and reproductive sciences at UC San Francisco along with Jennifer Parker, PhD, of the National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

6 Feb 2013

GSTM gene mutation, air pollution can increase risk of asthma-related cockroach allergy

An allergic reaction to cockroaches is a major contributor to asthma in urban children, but new research suggests that the insects are just one part of a more complex story. Very early exposure to certain components of air pollution can increase the risk of developing a cockroach allergy by age 7 and children with a common mutation in a gene called GSTM may be especially vulnerable.

6 Feb 2013

Samoan epidemic of obesity may start with rapid weight gain in early infancy

As some Pacific island cultures have "westernized" over the last several decades, among the changes has been a dramatic increase in obesity. Researchers don't understand all the reasons why, but even a decade ago in American Samoa 59 percent of men and 71 percent of women were obese. A new Brown University study finds that the Samoan epidemic of obesity may start with rapid weight gain in early infancy.

6 Feb 2013

Survivors of CNS cancer in childhood are at increased risk for disturbance in body image

Survivors of cancer of the central nervous system (CNS) in childhood are at heightened risk for disturbance in body image and self-image in relation to sports or other physical activities, according to a nationwide study from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden published in the Journal of Neuro-Oncology.

5 Feb 2013

MSF claims aid for vaccines subsidizing pharmaceutical companies, Guardian reports

"Large sums of public money intended to ensure children in the developing world are immunized against disease are effectively being used to subsidize Big Pharma, doctors working in the field claim," the Guardian reports.

5 Feb 2013

India's success in fighting polio shows what country is capable of with proper funding, accountability

"India's successful war on polio shows what can happen when its government sets clear policy goals backed with proper funding and real accountability," journalist and author Dan Morrison writes in an opinion piece in the New York Times' "Latitude" blog.

5 Feb 2013

Cartilage tympanoplasty can be performed successfully in 95% of young children

Cartilage tympanoplasty can be performed successfully in 95 percent of young children when appropriate conditions exist, according to a study in the February 2013 issue of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery.

5 Feb 2013

Children with autism spectrum disorders more likely to have feeding problems

Healthy eating not only promotes growth and development, but also provides important opportunities for children to socialize during meals. A new, comprehensive analysis of feeding behavior in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) indicates that these children are five times more likely to have a feeding problem, including extreme tantrums during meals, severe food selectivity and ritualistic mealtime behaviors.

5 Feb 2013

AAPOS committee revises guidelines for automated preschool vision screening

The Vision Screening Committee of the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus, the professional organization for pediatric eye care, has revised its guidelines for automated preschool vision screening based on new evidence. The new guidelines are published in the February issue of the Journal of AAPOS.

5 Feb 2013

AIBioTech announces implementation of L-asparaginase activity assay for pediatric ALL

AIBioTech is pleased to announce implementation of a new laboratory derived test to measure L-asparaginase levels in patients being treated with any of the current asparaginase drugs including: Oncaspar, Kidrolase, Erwinaze, and Elspar.

5 Feb 2013

Researchers identify gene variants that influence lifespan

By broadly comparing the DNA of children to that of elderly people, gene researchers have identified gene variants that influence lifespan, either by raising disease risk or by providing protection from disease.

5 Feb 2013

Hope against dangerous form of acute lymphoblastic leukemia

After an intensive three-year hunt through the genome, medical researchers have pinpointed mutations that leads to drug resistance and relapse in the most common type of childhood cancer-the first time anyone has linked the disease's reemergence to specific genetic anomalies.

4 Feb 2013

Measles: an interview with Dr. Robert Perry, World Health Organization

Measles is a disease marked by fever, rash, and cold symptoms (red eyes, cough, runny nose) that results in a temporary suppression of the immune system and a drop in vitamin A levels.

4 Feb 2013

Investigators use genome analysis to eliminate lifetime drug prescription in two children

Using genome-wide analysis, investigators at the Sainte-Justine University Hospital Research Center and the University of Montreal have potentially eliminated a lifetime drug prescription that two children with a previously unknown type of adrenal insufficiency had been receiving for 14 years.

4 Feb 2013

WHO issues new guidance on sodium intake

"The World Health Organization (WHO) has for the first time recommended limits on children's daily consumption of sodium which it hoped would help in the global fight against diet-related diseases becoming chronic among all populations," Reuters reports, adding, "The guidelines vary depending on the child's size, age and energy needs, and apply to children over the age of two."

3 Feb 2013

Child Health News

UCLA study to help reduce high medical costs for children with complex chronic diseases

Catholic hospital says its argument on fetuses was 'morally wrong'

Experimental TB vaccine does not protect infants, study shows

Paternal obesity may alter genetic mechanisms in next generations

Researchers detect social attention deficits in infants at increased risk of autism

Study shows link between outdoor particulate pollution and impaired fetal growth

GSTM gene mutation, air pollution can increase risk of asthma-related cockroach allergy

Samoan epidemic of obesity may start with rapid weight gain in early infancy

Survivors of CNS cancer in childhood are at increased risk for disturbance in body image

MSF claims aid for vaccines subsidizing pharmaceutical companies, Guardian reports

India's success in fighting polio shows what country is capable of with proper funding, accountability

Cartilage tympanoplasty can be performed successfully in 95% of young children

Children with autism spectrum disorders more likely to have feeding problems

AAPOS committee revises guidelines for automated preschool vision screening

AIBioTech announces implementation of L-asparaginase activity assay for pediatric ALL

Researchers identify gene variants that influence lifespan

Hope against dangerous form of acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Measles: an interview with Dr. Robert Perry, World Health Organization

Investigators use genome analysis to eliminate lifetime drug prescription in two children

WHO issues new guidance on sodium intake

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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